The Cat's Meow
by Captain Lupin Ferus
Summary: When Lauren saves a cat while in Japan for overseas studies, a string of strange events start to unfurl before her. Now she wishes she hadn't gone to Japan, met her roommate, and most of all saved that cat. She's got more going for her than she thought.
1. Prologue: Arrival

**The Cat's Meow**

**Prologue:  
Arrival**

**_Disclaimer: _I do not own the anime/manga _Yu Yu Hakusho_. It and all its respectable characters are © to Yoshihiro Togashi. I also don't own Lauren Mackenzie, she belongs to Arktos, a wonderful writer here, so go give her some lovin' too! The plot, also, is sadly not mine; it is a total parody and spoof off of _The Cat Returns_ by Hiroyuki Morita and Studio Ghibli. I'm borrowing some elements from the movie, but otherwise, everything like the writing, for instance, is definitely the only thing I can claim. Somewhat.**

**Like stated above, this entire story was a complete spoof, fueled by Arktos, and the own little voices in my head goading me into doing it. This brain baby thusly began to rot and fester in my mind, and of course, poor Lauren is the unfortunate candidate for this story. Poor girl. That's what she's labeled as. **

**Anyway, enjoy the story! And remember! YES! This is a SPOOF directly playing off of the movie _The Cat Returns_. So, if you see similarities…then yes, it was intentionally done.**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Today is gonna be a, uh, a less bad day. I can feel it. Sometimes I wake up and I just know that everything is going to be... less bad._**  
-Ally, "_Ally McBeal_"**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Lauren stared around the airport, noting that there were very little, if any, English-bearing signs. All she could see were the graceful lines of Japanese, although she did recognize a few symbols. Moving through the crowds of the airport, apologizing briskly if she bumped someone on the way, it didn't take her long to find the baggage claim area. It did, however, take nearly an hour before she spotted her bags long after the carousel began spinning, and she found herself somewhat irritated.

"This will be a great experience, they told me! You'll be fine, they insisted! It'll open up your horizons, they said! Well, I'm certainly facing a different horizon, but so far I'm not convinced this is gonna be some grand adventure if I can't even get my bags…"

_There were a lot of people on that plane,_ she reminded herself. Of course it had taken some time to get her bags. It had been an international flight, a lot larger than a commercial trip. She just had to learn to expect delays like this.

Lauren sighed, and looked over her luggage. _I packed so much,_ she thought. _I'll need a…darn, what's it called again. A trolley, I'll need a trolley._

She turned to look around the mostly empty lobby, watching the people still loitering about with mild curiosity. Where was the person she was supposed to meet? Then she saw him. It was a young man, with long, gorgeous red hair and deep green eyes watching her from a distance.

Lauren watched as the young man—slender and tall, around her age—stopped before her and came around the trolley he had brought with him. He smiled at her kindly and gave a short, low bow to her.

"Good afternoon, Mackenzie-san. I hope your flight was not too uncomfortable."

Lauren stared for a moment before she slowly, if hesitantly, bowed back. "I…yes, thank you. It-it was fine. And you must be…Shuiichi Minamino. Or is it Minamino Shuiichi?"

"Either is fine, Mackenzie-san. Or would you prefer Miss Lauren?" He continued to flash that charming, pretty smile of his and she knew her face was getting red. She ducked her gaze and nodded.

"I don't mind either way, Lauren's fine, but…" She frowned a little, before she heard him chuckle.

"You can call me Shuiichi, if that makes you feel any better. Come along; let's get your things out of here. I'm sure you've had a long flight and you'd like to rest."

She nodded, metaphorically wiring her mouth shut and began piling her belongings carefully onto the trolley. She reached for the handles when they were finished, but he gently coaxed her away and began pushing it himself, leaving her staring for a split second before trailing off beside him. She stared around, finding it simpler to look for her answers rather than ask unnecessary questions.

_Kind of hard,_ she reminded herself a little glumly, _when you're far from home and can't read the official language…_

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"You're very quiet."

Lauren blinked, realizing she had been staring off into space with only slight embarrassment. From what she could see from out her window, they were passing through the city now, and the teenager felt as if she was seeing the compact homes, the rising buildings, and the flashing lights of advertisements for the first time.

Her eyes growing sore from all the staring, she rubbed at them discreetly and winced as her voice came out a little hoarse. "Just tired, I guess. I'm sorry."

He laughed again, and she liked the sound of it. "It's all right, I understand. We're almost there, I promise."

At this prompt, Lauren admitted privately to herself that she was curious about the place she was going to be living in. Would she be in an apartment the size of a closet, or would it be a spacious, roomy home like she was used to? The kind of roomy and spacious home she was used to, at least? _I should have asked Monica to go on this trip instead…_

"It must be very different here for you, Lauren. I know it was a bit of a shock for me when I was in America for a short while."

She perked up at that. _No wonder his English is so good._ She looked away from the window and at him—she was still reeling at the reverse driver-passenger seats—in surprise.

"You…went to America?" She asked cautiously, keeping her question short and to the point. No need to be nosy, no need to be rude, or pushy, or inappropriate. She hoped it didn't seem like she was prying, but he didn't seem to take it that way, thankfully. He smiled a little to himself more anything, and nodded.

"Yes, for a small amount of time. I was…with a friend of mine. She's quite a rambunctious young woman, but very kind and helped me out in a time of need."

Lauren watched him for a moment, and then the car fell back into the lapse of silence. She considered this nugget of information and smiled a little, and before she knew it, they were pulling up to an apartment complex; one she noticed it wasn't that different from home. After a long interval of moving and shifting and pushing, they managed to get everything upstairs onto the third floor.

"This is one of the many apartment complexes that's owned by the university, but not on university grounds. It's a co-op complex, so you'll see ample mingling."

"I…I suppose. I…didn't exactly go to a university back home. We had community college." Lauren answered.

He smiled and shrugged. "No matter. My apartment has two rooms, and I did have a roommate the first year, but he moved out not that long ago—,"

"Um…excuse me, I'm _really_ sorry to interrupt, but…we're sharing an apartment?"

He gave her a puzzled stare before he nodded and said, "Yes, I thought you knew. Your parents made the arrangements with the school and arranged them with me. They never told you?"

He tilted his head to the side slightly, and Lauren felt a blush creeping up on her. _Oh, great, now you've probably insulted him or something. Way to go, Mackenzie!_

She bit her lip and nodded, before replying, "Well…yes, they…explained I'd have a roommate, but…I didn't expect…"

"A male, I presume?" He laughed and she definitely felt the blush creeping past her neck.

"Y-yes..."

"I see. Well, from what I remember, the cultures in North America in general are very different from that of Japan's, but I can understand your discomfort. Unfortunately, the school year is close at hand, I don't believe there are any other available rooms." He paused momentarily, passing a glance over the apartment. It was small, but quaint and had everything a college student needed. "I believe this was one of the last ones available for you, thanks to your parent's tenacity. You can move out later in the year as the students come and go, I hope you won't mind the accommodations until then."

His explanation made sense, and Lauren felt slightly guilty as well that she wasn't well informed enough to know this. She was nervous enough that the man before her had gone out of his way to help her from the airport and her luggage to here and now. Lauren had known about having a roommate, and her arrangements with the university. She just hadn't been aware of the scarcity of apartments, or that her roommate would be anything other than female. Nudging the ground her with foot, she was unsure of what to say for a moment before nodding quietly.

"Well, I…I guess I can wait a while. It shouldn't be so bad," she said at last, unsure of what else there was to say. She lifted her gaze to look around the apartment. It was already nicely furnished, if sparse. Certainly not a place she'd object to staying in.

"Let's get you settled in, then. I'm sure you're tired enough. We'll talk later on, if you wish?"

He motioned to one of the doors behind him and Lauren nodded. Picking up her backpack and a suitcase, she followed him down a short hallway to a small but quaint room already decorated with the basics: a bed, a bookshelf, a desk, and a clothing bureau. Everything else was up to her for decorations, she supposed.

"The college provides for the barest essentials, if that's what you're wondering. My previous roommate had his own sheets, but I replaced them with the original ones when he left. Don't worry, they're clean; they've never been used." He reassured her as he set down her other suitcase. She found the light switch and flipped it on, gaining more of a feel for the room. It was smaller than hers back home, but she could at least begin making it her own for the time being.

Again, he turned those pretty green eyes and charming smile on her, and she felt the blush creeping back again. "T-thank you, for all the help, Shuiichi, I really appreciate it."

Unsure of what else to do, she remembered their first initial greeting, and tried a small bow to him. That's what the Japanese did for greetings and goodbyes, right? Like, aloha was hello and goodbye on Hawaii. Thankfully, he returned the gesture, still smiling, before he left, offering her the advice to sleep and recharge her tired batteries, as it were. Lauren collapsed on her bed finally, legs shaking a little, and she fell asleep right then and there as soon as her head hit the pillow.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The days passed by, and soon, the weeks. To Lauren's surprise, when she finally took notice of the time and day, a month had gone by. She found herself staring at the clock on her laptop, suddenly reflecting on the past several weeks.

Her first week, she was stiff and unused to the culture she was now thrust into. She tried to be noticed as little as possible, vouching for observation rather than being an ignorant outsider—the Japanese had a word for it, she found out later, _gaijin_—and being nosy and pushy to learn. She found she learned more by observing, surprisingly, the customs of the people. She didn't see Shuiichi often in her first week, which she found almost comforting; she was still somewhat unsure of how to act around him when he was present.

She found out, not that long after moving in, that Shuiichi had plenty of female admirers. What surprised her—and at the same time, didn't—was that he also had male admirers as well. They were, she came to learn, envious of his looks, obviously, and his intelligence. She was often cast little scowls or dirty looks in the hallways on her way home from school. It unnerved her, and made Lauren shrink into herself a little bit more at the unwelcome feeling.

Thankfully, she didn't interact with Shuiichi all that often, much to her relief and even disappointment. She was curious about him, but at the same time, reluctant to approach her roommate for things bigger than the occasional small question. Even then, she felt a little nervous in approaching him.

When he wasn't at class, he was usually in his room studying. He always seemed to be in a book, working at his homework, even in the first week, and she had to admire his dedication, although she also wondered about his life outside school. Did he have a job? He must, if he paid for the rent and bills to this place. What about friends? Did he manage to balance his time while at school and hanging with them, or did he dedicate his time wholeheartedly to his school and work? What about family?

She sometimes spotted him on the phone, speaking quietly in Japanese and confirming that he talked to someone on a regular basis. And although, she would never admit it, Lauren sometimes stood outside her bedroom door, pausing in leaving or going back inside to listen to him. She liked listening to him talk; he had a nice speaking voice. It was very smooth and cultured, like silk made out of words. Then she would catch herself and rush back into the sanctity of her room, her embarrassment at the prospect of being caught soon melting away when she didn't hear a knock at her door, wondering again who her roommate truly was.

It was that night, when she found herself in the middle of a half-written email to her parents and staring at her computer clock, amazed at the quickly passing month, that she learned a little more about him. Hungry from having only a small and greatly picked at lunch, she picked up the half-finished, cold and stale meal —leftovers, as it were—and left her room. The living room was clear of any life, as was the tiny kitchenette, and she sighed, scraping her food into the trash. _What a waste, I didn't even finish. No wonder I'm hungry…_

Moving to place her dish in the sink, now scraped clean, she nearly dropped it in fright at a voice behind her. "Not very hungry, I presume?"

Nearly having a metaphorical heart attack from the shock, she hastily stowed the plate into the sink before turning around, fearing she might drop it if she didn't do that first. Shuiichi was there in the open doorway of the kitchen, smiling at her, hair pulled back in a low ponytail. Lauren resisted the urge to put a hand to her chest and feel her heartbeat; it was going so fast she swore it was going to burst from her chest. Quickly gathering her thoughts, Lauren only shook her head at first before assembling a quick reply.

"No, it's just…it got kind of gross, and I don't think the microwave…will help. I might just …make some noodles, I suppose."

"Don't do that, it isn't healthy to live off of them all the time. You eat them more than anything else in the pantry. You _can_ eat anything you like, Lauren. Don't be so scared to pick something out. I can just buy more, you know." He smiled at her in that kindly, charming manner, not knowing what effect it had on her. Or maybe he did, but he didn't seem to care, or wish to embarrass her by pointing it out. Lauren swallowed, feeling her throat drying, wishing she could come up with a suitable response. He pushed himself away from the wall with grace she didn't know anyone—maybe other than an acrobat or a dancer—could have, and moved towards the pantry.

Lauren wisely chose this time to turn and clean the dish, busy herself with something other than looking at him.

"Tell you what, I'll make you something. Not noodles, of course," he added with a chuckle. Lauren felt her vocal chords freeze up as she stared at the dish in her hand, hot water running over it and her hands. She blinked rapidly several times before she bit the inside of her cheek and turned to Shuiichi, dropping the dish in the sink.

"Y-you really don't have to, I'm fine, really," she protested, surprised at how soft her voice was. She tried clearing it a bit, quietly of course.

"Nonsense. I was feeling a bit hungry myself. I don't mind making a little extra," he replied breezily as he moved with practiced ease through the kitchen. She stared dumbly after his movements, trying to think of a comeback, of a reply to dissuade him, but she stayed her tongue, not wanting to offend him. He was going out of his way; it would be rude to tell him not to bother.

So, she quietly stood by and watched him for a while, secretly admiring how he moved with such…well, grace. She rarely saw men walk with that kind of confidence, and she was wondering vaguely if he was even single.

_Well, it wouldn't be much of a surprise if he wasn't; all he does is go to school and study at home…_Lauren finally caught herself staring for too long, too intently. She hurriedly turned around; promptly reminded that she'd left a dirty dish unattended and the water running. While she worked on scrubbing at the dish furiously, Shuiichi was calmly creating some unknown dish behind her. It smelled delicious, and her mouth watered despite her best efforts.

A tap on her shoulder made her jump, and she craned her neck to see him there, standing at ease while she was having mini-panic attacks inside. Why did he have to be so…_distracting_? It was going to be the end of her if she didn't do something about it. _Like what,_ she challenged herself. _Move out? Great idea, there's no vacancies anywhere, you've checked._

Returning to the present, she found him smiling at her patiently, while she finished gathering her thoughts. "The food is done. And…you've been scrubbing that dish for the past five minutes. I'm sure that it's thoroughly clean now."

She felt her face redden, and there was nothing she could about it except turn away and quickly shut the water off before setting the dish in the dishwasher.

"Um…thank you. Sorry."

"For what? Nothing to apologize for."

"Sor—, er…right." She felt like hitting her head on the counter. Or drowning in the tub at how stupid she was sounding. _Really stupid, you dope,_ she groaned inwardly. It only made her confused, and perhaps a little less chagrined when he laughed off her odd behavior and thankfully did not pursue it. Instead, he motioned towards the small, two-chaired kitchen table and gave off that inviting and warm charm he usually did. Two plates of steaming spiced meats and vegetables were on two plate dishes, glazed in some type of sweet sauce, she could smell it from the counter.

"Something to drink as well, then?" He offered, opening the fridge.

"Uh, yeah, sure. Water, please."

He nodded and pulled out two bottles, handing one to her. In that instant of close contact, Lauren felt her nose tickle. _Uh-oh. Don't sneeze, don't sneeze, please don't—_

She sneezed. Big time. She was just glad that she had enough sense to duck away just in time. She stared at the ground in horror for several long seconds, holding back the squeak that was her voice right then and there. Slowly, though, she saw an opportunity to gather any shred of credibility to herself and straightened herself up, looking at Shuiichi in the eye.

He had a concerned look on his face, a hand outstretched, but held back at the same time from her. "Are you all right? You aren't sick, are you?"

_Great now he'll worry if I'm gonna get him sick, if I am! Maybe…_

"No, no, it's…my allergies. Er, you…wouldn't happen to have been around any dogs, have you? They kind of…aggravate them." She answered more sheepishly than she meant. Shuiichi slowly withdrew his hand, a frown creasing his lips and he shook his head, brows knit.

"No…I haven't. Perhaps it was something else…are you sure you're all right? Are there any other allergies I should be aware of, just in case? Food allergies, perhaps?"

At this, he gave a glance to the plates of food behind him.

"N-no, no, no, just…canines in general, actually. There's nothing else, I'll just…get some tea later, it usually helps calm my allergies down."

A look of relief crossed his face when he looked back at Lauren, but she thought she saw something flicker across his eyes, something…wary, although it had passed too quickly for her to properly identify. Then he flashed that smile again, inviting her back to the food, which just smelled oh-so-delicious all over again. She eyed it, her earlier embarrassment almost forgotten by his gentle politeness to curb the subject away from her, and she eventually consented, feeling hunger clawing at her belly like a wild thing.

But, she couldn't help but think of that passing glint in Shuiichi's eyes, something that made her shiver. She didn't know what it was, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to know…

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**And thus, the great calamity sets itself into motion. Review please, and if you want, leave me a critique as well; they're both greatly appreciated! 8D**


	2. Off

**Chapter One:  
Off**

**Reviewers: **

**Cain Elphinstone **

**White Rose Fox**

**Springflowerangel**

_**Disclaimer:**_** All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them. **

**And to the Anonymous reviewer, please leave your info or a name next time, I'd like to give you some real credit next time! 8D**

**OoOoOoOoOoO  
**

_Well, something sure the hell ain't right.  
- **Captain Mal**__, "__Serenity"  
_

**OoOoOoOoOoO **

It was well into her third month that Lauren realized that she hadn't looked for a new apartment or roommate yet. She'd grown used to Shuiichi, mostly due to the fact that she didn't see him very often at school or at the apartment, and grew less and less skittish around him as time went on. Still, it didn't mean she allowed her guard to be brought down, secretly still concerned as she was that if she didn't remain polite to him, he could very well turn nasty and throw her out on her butt. Of course, the teenager knew by now the chances of him acting in such an extreme manner was unlikely (not to mention out of character), but she wasn't taking any chances while she was still disoriented by her temporary move to Japan.

However, Lauren had noticed she was more comfortable with him than she had been when they'd first met. Partially due to the fact he was more than she expected, being without a doubt charming to a fault. He had been nothing but cordial and polite with her, showing that he at least accepted her company. Ever since that night in the kitchen, he would often cook meals for the both of them, without her knowing up until he knocked on her door and offered her a plate of food.

It also made a difference that she had gotten to know him a little more, what kind of common interests he had, that sort of thing. For example, that he had an interest in biology and botany and was making it his major, or that he'd recently had new additions to his family in the form of a young stepbrother and a stepfather. Apparently he would sometimes visit them, putting to rest Lauren's previous theory that he holed up in his room during the half of the day when he wasn't at class. He also would occasionally catch up with friends in town on the weekends when he wasn't working. But still, it was tidbits of information like this that made her realize how little she truly knew about him.

_Well, maybe he actually gets out and does things, makes money while I'm waiting for a check from my parents. That's what I should look into, a job…_

At least Lauren was getting better at the language. That certainly upped her chances of being employed. Already she could understand her professors and classmates better, to the point where she was able to read a decent amount Japanese. Perhaps a little more brokenly than she'd like, but she was getting better each day nonetheless. Maybe that would be enough to help her find work.

Which was why, one day after finishing a steady parade of classes and a surprise phone call from her mother later, Lauren went hunting for a job on the streets near the university and her apartment complex. Her reasoning was simple: that she couldn't always depend on her parents to send her checks every other week and needed to start pulling her own weight. Perhaps even help pay for the rent.

At this thought, she sighed. "But, I don't know if Shuiichi will like it, me butting in like that. Ohhhh…"

Lauren stopped to stare forlornly at the sign of a noodle house restaurant, with an an expression that might lead passerbys to think she'd experienced some traumatic event, like someone had run over her dog. Well, if she wasn't allergic to dogs and actually owned one, that is…

She shook her head, trying in vain to steeer her train of thoughts back on track. The fact was, Lauren did need the extra money, with the small amount she received from her parents usually eaten away by snack vending machines alone. _Everything's so expensive here, and even if I don't help with the rent, I need more money for other things. Like school supplies…_

It was then the blonde suddenly realized she'd been standing in front of the noodle restaurant for far longer than she intended. A few people were staring at her, and the teenager felt a light blush heating up her face, hurrying in the direction of the door to escape the many prying eyes. But it was just as she reached for the door handle that the door itself flew open, forcing her to leapt back out of the way and barely suppress a mild yelp of surprise. Something she was extremely glad of when she saw a familiar figure exiting the noodle house made her relax considerably.

Shuiichi.

He was with two other people she didn't recognize, but the way they all came out together, she could only guess they were friends. One was tall and gangly, with a head of uncommonly orange hair that threw her off momentarily. It wasn't usual to see someone with a color like that; Shuiichi was an anomaly, and she hazarded a guess that the carrot-top was the same. It even looked like it was a natural shade, in contrast to the many people she'd seen so far that obviously dyed or bleached their hair.

The other person was shorter than both Shuiichi and the carrot top, even if still considerably taller than Lauren herself. He was laughing at something the carrot top was saying, hunched over slightly with his hands in his pockets and a dangerous glint in his brown eyes as he surveyed the area. Shuiichi was smiling at the two in that same patient manner he did with Lauren, and for a moment she just stood there, hesitant to disturb them. Watching them in relative bewilderment before the shortest of them looked her way and saw her staring.

"What, is there something on my face?" He raised an eyebrow. "If you've got a problem with us, kid, you should just spit it out and get this over with."

_Kid? I'm probably the same age as you! _Was the automatic response that came to mind, but she resolved to hold her tongue no matter how rudely she was addressed. And here she thought most Japanese people were polite and observed more courteous manners towards others.

_Cultural stereotypes bite the dust again. I guess I should really stop being surprised by that._

Shuiichi turned to look at her and instant recognition flared in his eyes. At least he wasn't pretending not to know her in public, although she couldn't imagine why he didn't. Even if she'd be embarrassed beyond belief if he changed his mind.

"Lauren, what are you doing here?" He turned his smile on her and she somehow found herself returning it, clearing her throat in what she hoped was a discreet manner.

"Um…I'm just, well…I'm trying to apply for a job. I…want to do something other than sit around, you know?"

The carrot-top was eyeing her curiously, and she was fighting back the urge to blush furiously at his polite, if perhaps intense expression. The other one on Shuiichi's other side was watching her with an air of boredom, making her nervous.

"A job? There are places closer to the apartment I can show you, if you'd like. They aren't hiring here, it's a family run restaurant, I'm afraid."

Shuichi motioned to the noodle house she was in front of, and Lauren sighed again at the realization of how much time she'd wasted. Out of the seven places the teenager had already visited, three were family run, two weren't hiring, and only the last two had actually given her applications which she'd squirreled away in her book bag. At this rate, she could use the help, she thought while biting her lip slightly in contemplation.

"But…what about your friends?" She replied, slightly meekly, nodding to the other two who were watching her. It was hardly fair to ask him to give up his spare time for her, after all, and she could see him pausing. Taking this into consideration as he looked to both his companions.

"Aw, I don't mind, really. It's not like I have much else to do today anyways, and I don't mind helping a pretty girl find a job. You can count on Kazuma Kuwabara!" The carrot-top broke into a goofy grin and Lauren couldn't help but find herself returning the gesture, even if his comment made her flush again. She was thoroughly amazed, like she had been with Shuiichi, that he knew perfect English with only a slight accent.

However, the other man seemed much less enthusiastic about his friend's idea. He hadn't exactly been looking at her with hostility so far, but it wasn't friendliness either. She only relaxed when he shrugged his indifference, hands still in his pockets as he too switched to English. Lauren wondered if they were all doing it for her benefit. _I can speak Japanese, even if it's kind of broken and not perfect…_

"Eh, I don't really have anything else to do today either. Keiko's busy with work, I'll just swing by here later on today when we're finished up. Name's Yusuke Urameshi, you?"

Shuiichi patiently waited as Lauren introduced herself, and she finally turned to look at him, uncertainly. Like a younger child waiting for instructions from an adult she didn't quite know, which as far as she concerned, was pretty much the truth while she was living in a foreign country she didn't fully understand. He gently motioned for her to follow and she seemed encouraged by his smile, or perhaps Kuwabara's effortless small talk and general warmth. But maybe it was Yusuke finally easing into the situation, realizing she wasn't a threat and gently poking fun at her now, making her blush furiously.

Either way, it was a good thing to see her out and about. So far he'd only seen her around the university grounds, always looking lost in thought or determined to get to her next set of classes or holed up in her room. She hadn't seemed to notice his taking leave from the apartment, like for work, or to visit his family. Thankfully she hadn't run into Hiei yet. He somewhat looked forward to, yet dreaded, that almost inevitable meeting.

They were barely a block away from the set of small businesses he knew to be hiring at this time of year when Lauren suddenly stopped walking, looking back at something. He and the others followed suit, and Yusuke shouted at her, asking what was wrong.

She didn't seem to hear him, her gaze still intently locked behind her. It was then Shuiichi noticed what it was she was looking at. A white cat with a black-tipped tail and black-socked feet, although one leg was an entire sleeve of black. In its mouth was a small parcel from a snack vendor, neatly wrapped with a bow tied on top. When the cat looked back, he saw one eye had a black patch around its green eyes, and Shuiichi narrowed his eyes, frowning slightly.

"Something about that cat doesn't feel right…and that's something I never thought I'd say." Kuwabara muttered beside him, as the cat looked back and forth as well as up and down the street. As if it was checking for traffic, he couldn't help but think.

"Hey, you dumb cat! Get away from the road!" Lauren called after the animal, frowning and not noticing the wariness of her three companions down the road. Eyeing a large approaching moving truck, she felt a little gasp build up in her throat when looked back towards the cat. It had dropped its pretty little parcel and was attempting to nip it back up. She heard the rumbling of engines, a panicked feeling curling in the pit of her stomach.

_It's gonna get killed!_

She moved without really thinking, unable to simply sit there and allow an animal become road kill.

"Lauren, don't!"

The voice only vaguely registered in her head as she turned her head to see the truck heading her way. Her heart was beating rapidly, and in the back of her mind, Lauren thought to herself, _God, I'm so stupid, please don't let me die!_

In one swift movement, she scooped up the cat and his reacquired parcel. Everything seemed to be moving slowly, as if to show she had almost made it, and she felt a small sense of pride, of victory—

Right before she tripped over a low hedge fence and nearly face-planted into the dirt, the cat still cradled in her arms. For several long seconds she lay there, panting heavily, heart still beating fast and hard in her chest. Sitting up and ignoring the disorientation, Lauren felt her fuzzy bundle shifting in her arms, looking down in astonishment to find the cat purring as if nothing was wrong.

It squirmed away from her, and as soon as its paws hit the ground…it stood up on its hind legs, and began dusting its body off with its front paws. But it was only when the cat's tail suddenly twitched split off into two and it looked up to _smile at her that Lauren truly began to doubt her sanity._

"Ah, what a day, what a _day. _I thank you, miss, for saving me like you had. I'm sure if you hadn't, I would have been dead. Even demons can die, you know. Then again, if I hadn't dropped my package, you wouldn't have risked your life. Ah,_what a__day._"

Lauren stared at the split-tailed cat with wide eyes, feeling a cold sweat breaking out on her brow, breathing shallowly and attempting to rationalize what she was seeing. "I…I don't…"

"Oh, don't look so distressed, miss. I thank you for saving my life," the cat continued, a human intelligence gleamed in its green eyes as it bowed to her, deep and low. "I will have to come back and thank you for this properly, miss. But, at the moment, I'm on an important mission. Please forgive me, but I must be going now."

And with that, the cat scooped its parcel up in its paws, placed the neat little bow in its mouth, and trotted off on all fours, tails quickly morphing back into one. Lauren stared after it with still-wide eyes, mouth gaping as any shred of sane word or even thought seemed to have fled her entirely.

"Lauren!"

The voice made her jolt in surprise, and her memory began kicking back in, heat rushing to her face all over again. _Oh, I'm such an idiot for doing that! No way that cat talked, I must've hit my head harder than I thought!_

She turned to see Shuiichi and his friends were crossing the street while the traffic was held up at the light down the street. Picking herself back up with her legs still shaking, he was in front of her seconds later, quickly helping her out of the bushes. His eyes scanning over her, making her feel more self-conscious.

"I'm-I'm fine, I swear, I just…need to walk it off."

Worry still plain in his expression, he even glanced around, almost with a sharpness she'd never seen in his eyes before.

"Are you sure you're all right?" He asked her gently, hands placed gingerly on her shoulders. She suddenly realized how close they were and she swallowed thickly before nodding.

"Just a little scuffed, I'm fine…" She muttered, feeling humiliated and embarrassed. She jumped when Kuwabara suddenly appeared at her side, Yusuke prowling not far behind.

"Couldn't find it. It's gone." Yusuke simply said to Shuiichi. He nodded and turned to gaze at Lauren again, that calculating look in his eyes once more.

"Come on, I think that's enough excitement for today."

"What about my job hunting? I don't—,"

He smiled and shook his head, smoothly intercepting her. "You should probably clean yourself up. No offense," he added quickly at the end when she began quickly surveying herself in panic and even a little shame. Her shirt and jeans were covered in smeared dirt and she smacked at it uselessly before giving up, her arms hanging uselessly at her side.

"Darn it…" She moaned under her breath. "I-I guess that you're right…I'll just head home. Y-You don't really have to come with me."

Tugging to free her bag from branches in a nearby bush, a hand fell in besides hers and began disentangling her bag delicately and carefully, and Lauren looked in surprise at Shuiichi. Suddenly, her bag was free, as if the branches had retreated at Shuiichi's very behest and he smiled at her, that same sweet and kind smile he always used. But this time she felt suddenly, in that moment he looked at her, that there was something else; although she wasn't sure what it was.

"Nonsense. I really don't want to see you running in traffic again," he joked and Lauren felt a slight flare of anger bloom in her.

"I'm not going to do it again, I—I was, well it was a spur of the moment thing, I don't even know why I did it, but I just, I just didn't want to see it get killed and—,"

Shuiichi raised a hand up and pressed a finger to her lips and instantly, she shut up quickly enough, realizing that she had gone off on a tangent and she felt shame replacing the anger within seconds. And the fact that she had to be stopped in her tirade only added more insult to injury. Her shoulders slumped and she gratefully took her bag.

"It's all right. You don't have to explain yourself. I'm sure Kuwabara would have done the same in your place,."

At this point, Kuwabara perked, chiming in with his same goofy, but kind grin, "Yeah, sure, I love cats! That was pretty brave of you, running out to save it and stuff."

Lauren felt a little cheered up by the words and less red-faced about the whole situation and she nodded and found herself smiling finally. "Yeah…I guess so. I like cats too, although I guess it was a little brainless to just run out like that."

Yusuke snickered a little and said something to Kuwabara, but she was distracted by Shuiichi pulling her aside, while the other two's banter went on behind them. "Come along, then. Let's get back home. I'm sure you're still a bit shaken."

He was right, of course. When wasn't he? Lauren glanced at her hands and they were still shaking slightly.

_Probably why I couldn't get my bag out. Of course he can't control plants; he wasn't the one who ran out into traffic and got all shaky, it was me. _She felt foolish, but deep down, she felt a small sense of pride. At least I got something done today…even if it was something stupid, too.

Shuiichi called to Yusuke and Kuwabara behind them, bidding farewell and an apology, and Yusuke shouted back. Lauren turned to look back at them, and Yusuke was waving a hand at them, a rather smug smirk on his face. "Hey, just be careful from now on, okay? Curiosity killed the cat and all that jazz!"

"Urameshi, that was terrible! What kind of joke is _that?" _Kuwabara growled back and the two turned heel to the opposite direction, still arguing as she and Shuiichi continued down their path. _At least…I did something worthwhile today…_

But Lauren didn't have a clue what was going to be waiting for her later that night.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

It wasn't morning, that much her groggy little mind had figured out. It wasn't morning, her body felt like lead, and she was now aware of the throbbing ache in her leg from where she fell earlier that day. The teenager rolled over onto her stomach and groaned, eyeing the digital clock on her bedside table saying it was three in the morning. She groaned, and then remembered that she had the weekend off and it was, currently, the weekend.

_Thank God… _Lauren thought with relief before closing her eyes._Why am I even awake? I should be sleeping like the dead…_

And then she heard it. The yowling of cats somewhere off in the distance, but the longer she listened, the closer it seemed to come. _Cats…? And it sounds like there's so many of them, too…_

Memories of the cat she saved earlier that afternoon struck her and she felt a chill worm its way up and down her spine, goosebumps breaking out all over her body. The cat had promised to properly thank her later. Thank her how, though? She rubbed at her bare arms absently and got out of bed, trying to find a coat. _I'll just…see what's going on. It sounds like quite a commotion. I wonder if anyone else is hearing it._

She found a coat hanging off her computer chair and tugged it on, while moving towards her door. As she was leaving she hesitated outside of Shuiichi's room, almost toying with the idea of waking him and asking for him to come with her, feeling a little mortified at the idea as soon she had it. She might possibly see a nasty side of him if she did that—like he was secretly a horrible morning person, or maybe he'd show his true colors of a jerk wearing the skin of a polite gentleman.

Wisely (or so she thought) deciding she didn't want to wake him up, Lauren shuffled her sneakers on as she reached the front door. Quickly making her way down the hall at a light, she stopped at the stairwell. _Wait…why am I even going outside to check on a bunch of cats? You probably just hallucinated the whole talking bit, anyways…it's a good thing you didn't say anything, either, or you might be a loony bin by now, nice roommate or not._

During this ongoing eternal conflict, Lauren didn't notice the music at first until she paused in her train of thought. It was a strange type of sound, something she heard on the television a few times when Shuiichi was watching it. She could only assume it was some kind of traditional Japanese music; the light beat of an occasional drum, interspersed by what she believed were flutes and a few other things.

_At least it's different, _she mused before adding,_and it sounds like it's a live…band? Orchestra?_

Nevertheless, Lauren remained rooted to the spot, listening to the song as well as the cacophony of cats yowling and screeching below in the streets. She looked around and back down the hallway, seeing no lights at the door crack or shuffle of movement from behind those closed doors, and frowned in confusion.

"Doesn't anyone else hear them?" She asked aloud, expecting no answer.

Finally, she turned towards the stairwell and descended, grudgingly admitting her curiosity was overruling her instincts to just go back to bed and ignore it like her neighbors. Like her roommate. Again, that urge to go back and get him flared up again and she viciously smothered it. _I don't need to run to him every time something new and unexpected comes up. He probably thinks you looked stupid after saving that cat and nearly dying in the process today. He's probably too polite to say anything…_

She felt a blush coloring her face once again, feeling ashamed at herself. _Stupid cats…they're messing with me, aren't they?_

Lauren reached the lobby for the apartment complex and quickly shuffled to the entrance and outside, feeling the slight autumn chill overcome her and feeling glad she was wearing long pants and a jacket.

There were cats running everywhere; big ones, small ones, fat and skinny ones of all the colors of the rainbow (that were natural to felines, of course). She moved closer towards the decorative stonewall that surrounded the apartment complex, pressing against it as she peered up and down the street. A few more cats rushed past her, tails uplifted and rigid in the air, moving at breakneck speed down the street to her left. She watched in bemusement, wondering what in the world they were getting so worked over about.

_Catnip, perhaps? S_he thought before dismissing it completely._Unless someone's growing a garden full of it, I don't think so…_

Then she saw the procession, a line of…figures moving down the street. Some were as tall as her, some as tall as a cat. They moved closer, under street lamps, and she held back a strangled gasp at what she saw. People, but with ears and tails, with ordinary cats among them and walking upright like the cat she'd rescued earlier that day. Their slinky bodies swayed back and forth as the cats on the streets surrounded the procession. Black cats were moving at the intruders, kicking and hissing at them.

_Bodyguards? _Her mind offered strangely enough. Lauren continued to watch transfixed as the procession of cats and cat-people—garbed in kimonos and robes and so much more—worked their way closer towards her, the cats on the streets slowly scattering. Some stubbornly following the procession up until they were practically at her complex. None of the upright cats or cat-people acknowledged her as the front line passed by her. Even so, she instinctively shrank behind one of the walls, peeping out from a corner.

An ornate pallet was being carried by four cat-people, and on their dark skin, she saw impressions of spots and dots—jaguar or leopard impressions, her mind vaguely provided as she stared—and on the pallet was a lounging cat. He was large, larger than any cat she'd seen before, and he was a tawny color, like a lion, with a bushy mane around his neck. She could only think of him as a lion, not a cat, once she laid eyes on that broad little muzzle and bushy mane, as well as the tufted tail. _I'm looking at a mini-lion, _she thought somewhat amusedly.

A robed cat, this one of very unusual coloring—green and black, with symmetrical shapes on his face and a pair of…glasses?—stepped around the pallet as the jaguar/leopard cat-people slowly sat it down. The cat swayed as it walked closer, a scroll in its paws and it cleared its throat before looking around. Lauren had hidden behind the wall by this point, and after an awkward moment's silence, she peeked out. The green and black cat was looking at her, and gently motioned for her to come closer, looking genuinely confused at her behavior.

"Um…please come over here, if you will." He said politely to her.

Lauren blinked and pointed to herself.

"Yes, you. I don't see anyone else, do you?"

She gazed around her, shook her head and again felt foolish, but was determined not to let it show as she stepped out from behind the wall and looked around her. Some cats had split tails, some were miniatures of their larger big cat cousins, like the mini-lion on his pallet, and others were regular cats. Some had regular fur coloring, and others ranged from the strangest combinations of pink, green, neon yellow and much more. It was an extremely odd sight.

She wondered briefly if this was the result of ingesting something she shouldn't have. Could food poisoning be making her dream these odd things? _It has to be a dream. I'm dreaming a lucid, strange dream of upright walking, talking cats._

The green and black cat cleared his throat again and opened his scroll and began to read it.

"On behalf of the Demon Cat Kingdom, the Demon Cat King himself would like to convey his deepest gratitude, for today, you have saved none other than his only son, Prince Maharu. The King of our kingdom wishes to convey his personal thanks to you."

Lauren stood there, feeling more than a little awkward as she stared at the cats and then at their so-called king. He peeped his eyes open, and she was surprised to see green instead of gold as he glanced at her with a toothy grin.

"Mmm…thanks a lot, honey. 'Preciate it." Amusement practically oozed from the regal cat, but also a sense of gratification as well. Lauren hesitated before she smiled a little and she nodded to him.

"You're welcome…" She replied warmly, jumping almost a foot back when a scroll with a ribbon tied on it was thrust under her nose by a tabby cat with kind yellow eyes. The cat looked young, but was kind of paunchy as well, and gave her a grin.

"This is a list of the absolutely wonderful gifts you shall receive, starting tomorrow! We've worked hard to secure these and we have a feeling that you will be pleased by them!" The cat stated and Lauren reached out for the scroll, almost expecting it to jump out and bite her. The texture of the scroll was rough, but not too coarse as she took it in her hand. She was instantly curious about the written contents, but gazed back at the Demon Cat King. The black and green cat cleared his throat again and adjusted his glasses.

"We appreciate your valiant rescue and hope that your gifts will please you."

Lauren only nodded again and uttered a timid "thank you" to the cats, feeling odder and odder the more time she spent outside with these cats talking with them.

With that said, the music started up again, startling her, and the jaguar/leopard people picked up the King's pallet and the whole company of cats took their leave. Lauren stood there, watching, although none of the other cats or cat-people looked at her in return. Soon they were gone and she was alone with the silence again.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	3. Sneaks

**Chapter Two: **

**Sneaks**

**Reviewers: **

**Bleachfan462**

**SabakunoGarra426**

**Cain Elphinstone**

**White Rose Fox**

**KuramaEnzanBlues**

**Cookiemania789**

_**Disclaimer:**_** All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them. **

**_Note_****: Wow, thanks to all my reviewers! I'm so glad you liked the story so far! Also, be sure to check out Arktos's fanfiction, she's quite awesome, if I do say so myself! Anyway, here's chapter three, enjoy! 8D**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_Cats, no less liquid than their shadows, offer no angles to the wind. They slip, diminished, neat, through loopholes less than themselves.  
_**- A.S.J. Tessimond**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

She was startled awake by a succession of knocks on her door. She kicked at her blankets and they flipped away as she swung her legs over her bed and stumbled to the door. She blinked bleary-eyed, confused for a moment at the door before opening it. She almost squeaked in surprise when she saw a stern-faced Shuiichi waiting patiently by. He gave her a small smile when she answered the door, but she felt it a little…fake, for some reason.

It somewhat disturbed her a little, but then she quietly stuffed away her thoughts, realizing that she was tired and reading into things.

"Good morning, Lauren. I'm sorry to disturb you, but there's something I'd like you to see." He motioned down the hallway and Lauren, feeling awkward, followed him wordlessly, bewildered by what was going on.

He led her over to the small balcony where he kept several plants he owned outside. They ranged from several flowers and herbs. But, as he slid the glass door open, Lauren saw that something was wrong. There were no longer any colorful flowering plants or delicious-smelling herbs outside. They were all gone, their pots now filled with what looked like…cat tails. Lauren then looked over the edge of the balcony as she stepped out, and looked down. Their apartment faced the streets, and in the small garden just outside the front doors of the apartment complex was filled with even more cat tails.

Lauren stared, eyes wide and she saw several others were hanging out on their balconies, pointing at the plants below.

"Oi, Shuiichi! You been growing something more than flowers now," a young man whom Lauren recognized as their neighbor shouted, lazing over his balcony railing. He spotted Lauren herself and gave her a bigger grin and a wink. She stiffened and walked back inside, indignant. Shuiichi followed after her.

"How the hell did those things grow overnight? They weren't there last night!" She muttered.

"So…you don't know what's going on, then?"

"How could I? I can't grow things like that…or anything in general. I've never even planted a seed before!" She huffed before realizing she was snapping at her own roommate, at the young man who was only asking an innocent and reasonable question. She clamped her mouth shut and turned away in embarrassment and mortification at herself. "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to snap, Shuiichi."

"It's all right. You had an ordeal yesterday. The only reason I asked was because I heard you moving around late last night. Perhaps you saw something or someone last night…?"

Lauren glanced at him, shaking her head. "No, no one, I…" She suddenly remembered the cats last night, and their 'Demon King' and she frowned. "No…I didn't see anyone last night. I just couldn't sleep for a little while, that's all."

She turned without a word and headed back to her room, hiding the concerned look on her face.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Lauren was gone for the rest day, leaving Kurama alone for a good majority of the day. She had left earlier after their conversation, clean and freshened up with a determination to find a job. He found it admirable, that she was still going through with it, but then he would put aside the distraction of her odd behavior, he focused more upon the strangeness that he had witnessed last night.

Of course she lied to him about last night. The cats from last night had been unaware of his presence from nearby, watching quietly in the darkness, eyes glittering as he kept a close watch on Lauren. She was only human of course, and if he allowed her in harm's way, well…it would fall on his shoulders as his failed responsibility when Koenma got word of it. Plus…he found his roommate interesting, in some ways.

She was a hard worker, trying to adhere to the politer side of society when it came to Japan's traditional customs. She kept a strict regiment to try and learn Japanese, in all its forms she was exposed to. She remained polite and yet he sensed a certain strain from her, as if she wanted to venture off from the path, but was too afraid. Too afraid, perhaps, of insulting or upsetting someone. It was endearing in ways; she was comical in some ways and in others, he often was tempted to tell her that she didn't need to be so polite and strict with reigning in her attitude around him. Earlier had been a relief, and a show that she was releasing some of her tension.

But now he had a mystery to solve. The cat she had saved the other day, and then the appearance of all those cat demons…

They certainly didn't seem to want to harm her, which was a big relief, but they were offering gifts to her. Demons were usually not like that, even cats. They were normally selfish creatures, but this unusual change of events has him taking a step back to analyze this situation with more scrutiny.

"What is your game here, king?" He said in a low voice.

"Talking to yourself again, fox? You really shouldn't do that, you know. Someone might think you were losing your touch."

Kurama calmly turned to the voice behind him and saw the familiar form of Hiei lounging against the now open sliding glass door to the balcony. The cat tails swayed behind him in a breeze. Hiei himself was staring at Kurama with a cool gaze, lips drawn in a thin line, arms crossed over his chest.

"It's nice to see you as well, Hiei. Make yourself at home," Kurama offered.

"I have no intentions of doing that. I'm here in regards to the incident last night."

"So you're aware of the demons as well? I'm not surprised."

Kurama turned towards the kitchen and Hiei followed behind the taller man.

"Just as I'm not surprised no humans were aware of the events happening, either."

"There was one, actually," Kurama replied, pulling a small container of ice cream from the freezer. He handed it to Hiei, but the fire demon did not take the proffered little gift. He merely stared straight at Kurama, red eyes narrowed at him.

"And you let them see it?"

"She happens to be my roommate…and I think that she may have set off a chain of events."

"Meaning?" Hiei finally took the container with a more forceful swipe than necessary.

"I believe she may have rescued one of the cat demon kingdom's subjects. And not just any cat demon, either. I believe he may have been their prince."

This bit of information held no shock to Hiei, nor did it register as important. It was more along the lines of annoyance. "Perhaps she should have let him get run over. He would've survived. Barely."

"From a car, perhaps. A truck weighing several tons would have sufficiently killed him, however." Kurama countered easily, taking a seat at the small kitchen table, while Hiei hunted for a spoon.

"Would have served their kingdom right for venturing into the human world with no guards. Royalties were always troublesome in the Demon World."

"They are the last to conform, as always." Kurama agreed with a nod of his head. "But I'm not worried about their politics. I'm worried for my roommate. They've offered…gifts to her. For saving their prince."

"Should serve her right for saving a demon prince brat, then."

Kurama frowned at this, but it barely registered to Hiei. Hiei was eyeing him for a moment like an unfavorable insect before his red eyes turned to the ice cream.

"She didn't know." Kurama finally answered. "At least, not until last night, that is, when they approached her. I'm more worried about these gifts they wish to give her than anything, really." He allowed his fingers to steeple together on the table and he gave the front door a glance over the short wall. The only sound in the small apartment was the sound of a ticking clock somewhere, and the occasional stabbing of ice cream from a metal spoon.

"Perhaps…I should gather more intelligence on these cat demons before proceeding with anything else." Kurama said after several minutes of the normally nerve-wracking silence. "I am not aware of their location in the Demon World, however. I have always ventured a visit to their kingdom, but even as Youko, I could never find that place. It may be time to find it now, before anything beyond my control happens."

Hiei had said nothing for the time being and merely attacked his small parcel. When he finished, he threw the entire container and spoon into the sink before pushing away from the counter.

"You should be careful, then. They are not kind to intruders to their kingdom. Not that you'll hear any pity from me if you are caught."

Kurama smiled a little, but it was unlike the patient and kind ones he usually gave to others, Lauren included. It was a reflection of his old self, cold and without humor. Behind his dark eyes, something else stirred. "Now, Hiei…words can hurt you know. I'm rather insulted that you think I'll be caught."

He chuckled, a very low sound. Hiei said nothing, watching the fox before him for a moment.

"Good luck is all I can say from here on out, fox. Don't get killed snooping around."

Then the demon was gone in a blur of black, leaving Kurama alone.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Lauren was sure that the strange things that happened last night should have been a dream. It could have been a dream, she tried to tell herself. But, the longer the day passed by, the harder it was to convince herself that last night had been a dream.

It all started after she left the house after Shuiichi had woken her up and asked her about the strange growth of the overnight cat tails plants. She had dressed in more proper attire—some nice charcoal slacks, black blouse with ruffles, and some nice slip on shoes—and left the apartment, her bag slung over her shoulder. The first half of the morning passed without incident, except for perhaps braving the forest of cat tails out in the front of her apartment complex.

She had been in such a mental tizzy, thoughts bouncing between the supposed dream last night, to getting a job, to the strange conversation between herself and Shuiichi that morning. She wandered around the several blocks leading near the school campus, the different apartment complexes, and the businesses near the school campus itself. She wandered around with only half a mind near them, not going in yet, browsing through the different stores, eyeing them as she perused through.

In her collective moments, she allowed herself to talk to with the owners or managers of the businesses and was given several applications, although some proprietors stated they were family-run businesses. She noticed this casual string of coincidence more and more, and when she did, she often noticed them staring at her like she was insane.

_Is it because I'm not Japanese?_ She found it a little disconcerting and perhaps even a little insulting if that were the case. _Whatever happened to equal opportunity in hiring? _

While she felt somewhat glum about it, she was still grateful for the places that offered her job applications and she was sitting on a bench off to the side of the sidewalk, resting. She reviewed over some of them, most of them retail stores, and several were food joints. She looked up from job applications and the swimming kanji before her eyes and found in front of her another hopeful prospect of a hirable job; she saw a sign in the window across from her seat, and saw it to be a pet store. Irony struck her as she suddenly remembered last night all over again.

It _was_ a dream, wasn't it?

She was trying to cling to that belief, but it was starting to fade. She stared at the sign, then at the store's front and hesitated, sheaths of paper in hand. A wind picked up and she instinctively clutched tightly at her papers and struggled to stuff them back into her bag, hair whipping around her face. She finally shoved the last of the applications into her bag, but paused when her hand brushed against something.

It was a scroll and as she lifted it out as soon as the wind died, she felt her mind drifting to last night once again. _The cats…they gave me this scroll… _

She opened it slowly and frowned, but nearly dropped it when something brushed against her leg. She jolted in surprise, and a hand flew to her heart, as if the gesture would calm it as she glanced down to see…cats. Several of them. They were all looking at her, purring, eyes wide and open as they stared at her. One of them was rubbing against her leg, mewling at her. Hesitantly, she reached down to pet the cat and it arched against the palm of her hand, purring even louder. She let out a nervous chuckle.

"Cats…great. I _must_ be going insane."

"Hey! Hey, you! What're you doing with the store's cats!"

Lauren's eyes flew upwards and she saw a sallow-looking young man, eyes narrowed at her, jaw clenched…

He stalked towards her and the cats paused to glance lazily at the man for a moment before looking back at Lauren adoringly, and they all started mewing at her, and rubbing against her and one another. One began grooming itself.

Lauren, however, had eyes on the angry looking young man stomping towards her and he scooped down to pick up the grooming cat. It yowled in protest as he did so.

"Are you stupid or something? These cats belong to the store! Were you trying to steal them in broad daylight?"

"What? No, no! I was just sitting here, I-I swear, they just came to me!"

"Right, sure. I bet you have catnip on you." The young man continued, staring at her beadily as he scooped another cat up. Lauren stared helplessly for a moment before picking up a third cat in one arm. The cat was purring deeply, she felt it thrumming through her.

"Look, I'm…not really sure why they came over. But I wasn't trying to…steal your…cats." She swallowed thickly before adding, "I didn't even know you had cats in there."

"It's a _pet store_, what do you expect?"

Lauren was taken aback by his harsh tone and she felt like simply walking away. She wasn't in the mood to argue or pursue this chain of conversation, but still…this was rather insulting.

"Some pet stores don't carry cats," she finally countered softly before putting the cat down on the ground by the young man. "Sorry your cats like me better than your store."

Then she decided it was time to walk away before it got even uglier between herself and the young man. She needed to get back to the apartment, back to her room. Maybe it hadn't been the best idea to leave after all. She was too distracted. And it seemed like she wouldn't be getting a job at that pet store, anyways. Not now, not after that strange confrontation.

Lauren sighed. She really needed to lie down, that's what she needed to do.

She didn't even notice the trail of cats following her back to the apartment, including the cats from the pet store.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

She had collapsed on her bed as soon as she got to the apartment and lapsed into an hour-long nap. When she woke up and checked her clock, Lauren groaned in exhaustion and buried her face in her pillow groaning a little bit.

"Why me," she said, her pillow muffling her voice. She sighed into it and picked her face up…only to squeal in shock and tumble backwards when she saw a cat staring back at her. It watched unblinkingly with yellow eyes and it mewed at her, before lapsing into a purring fit, settling on her pillow. Lauren threw a hand over her chest and felt her heart beating all entirely too fast and soon began to notice…there were cats everywhere in her room. She froze at all the staring eyes around her, the volume of purring, happy felines, and the furry bodies covering her floor, her bed, her desk, her windowsill…

"What's…going on?" She asked herself, and perhaps even the cats themselves, although she didn't expect an answer. She slowly gathered herself up from her bed, and immediately, cats stood, rumps in the air, tails high up like flags, eyes still staring. She felt rather creeped out by it all, considering the last forty-eight hours. She immediately began a dogged game of dodging feline bodies, big and small, and made for her door. She yelped when she saw even more cats lounging in the hallway, some basking lazily in the sun in front of windows.

_They're everywhere,_ she thought with a little chill worming its way up her spine. _Why are they following me? The pet store, now my home! How did they even get in here, anyways!_

She eyed the closed bathroom door. _Oh, good. They couldn't have gotten in there. I need to…think. _

Cats rubbed against her legs as she made a carefully picked trail towards the bathroom, careful not to step on paws or tails. Lauren truthfully didn't want to be on the receiving end of a little cat's claws, they hurt like hell.

Lauren grasped the bathroom door and swung it open, expecting a blissfully empty bathroom, and an empty space to think in. Inside, she was not expecting another troupe of felines inside. Inside…she was really not expecting a very large Bengal tiger waiting for her either.

The tiger itself was lounging on the bathroom floor, sprawled on its side, and when Lauren opened the door, it lifted its head, gave her a blink and was immediately on its paws, panting. Lauren stared, stiff scared and when it gave a low yowl, it jolted her out of her frozen state and she immediately squealed—purely out of reflex, she'd assure anyone who heard her—and slammed the door shut. The tiger yowled from behind the door, and she felt a thump against the door, like a paw smacking it, but nothing else.

Her heart raced as she slowly began to process this. _There's a tiger in the bathroom. Oh…my God, there's a _tiger_ in the _bathroom_. What the hell is going on! How did it even get here?_

The front door suddenly opened. Even above the deafening purring and constant meowing, she could hear it.

"Lauren? Lauren, are you here?"

Shuiichi's familiar voice brought a sudden and unsuspecting relief to her addled mind. Lauren immediately moved towards the living room, hoping for help, any help. She was met with the familiar flare of red hair, deep green eyes, and his tall stature, standing in the middle of the sea of fur and tails, cats rubbing against him like they were with her. He looked to her as soon as she was spotted, a hint of wanting an explanation in his expression.

"Oh, thank God…Shuiichi, before you think I'm…I dunno, making a cat orphanage or adopting all these cats, I'm not. I have no clue how they got here, I really don't. I came home, took a nap and they were all here!" She said this all almost in a single breath and had to stop to catch it before continuing. She hadn't even noticed the rather shocked expression on his face. "But…there's more. Shuiichi…please don't freak out but…there's a tiger in the bathroom."

This time, she noticed the dumbfounded expression on his face. She later catalogued it away for later uses, and would perhaps laugh later…in private, very quietly, when this whole mess was settled. But right now…

"I'm…I'm sorry, there's…a _what_ in the bathroom?"

"There's a _jungle cat_ in our bathroom! Do you think I could pull off getting a tiger across town without being seen? I don't even know where the closest zoo is!"

Once more, she was met with that dumbfounded look, and she was taken aback by it. It was a rather unusual expression for him, one that didn't suit his well-proportioned features. Finally a smile broke out on his face and he brought a hand to his chin, staring at her with his eyes glittering with mirth.

"I'm sorry, but…a tiger? Are you sure it's not a tabby cat? Your mind might be playing tricks on you, Lauren."

"Go look! It's a freakin' tiger!" She pointed, feeling somewhat dramatic, but she didn't care. She knew what she saw, and it wasn't a rather large tabby like Shuiichi suggested. He smiled disarmingly at her, and she wanted to believe his explanation when he did smile, but…she knew what she had seen. He carefully picked his way past the cats, and he almost seemed to move with a grace of someone older than he truly was. She was rather captivated by his movements and she followed, staring at his broad back with a blush.

_Snap out of it, Mackenzie. There's a tiger in the bathroom. Focus on that first!_ She berated herself. She almost ran into him when he stopped before the bathroom door. He smiled at her reassuringly. "Like I stated before, it was probably just a tabby cat. They're not uncommon in this area, they're quite popular, actually."

He grasped the door handle and she tensed, almost preparing for the tiger to be at the door, claws at the ready, teeth bared behind a snarling, striped face…

Shuiichi opened the door slowly and leaned forward a little. A few moments passed. Then, just as calmly, he closed the door and stared at it for several moments. A few knocks on the door notified a paw smacking at it.

"I believe…you are right, Lauren." He looked to her in that same calm fashion. "There is a tiger in the bathroom."

"…I told you. I swear, I wasn't making a _Hangover_ reference."

He arched a brow in question. "_Hangover_?"

"…It's a movie. The characters get drunk in Las Vegas, wake up the next morning, and don't remember anything. Their hotel room's trashed and they find a tiger in the bathroom."

"Ah. It sounds…interesting."

"It was funny," she offered meekly. He smiled and pulled a cell phone from his slacks pocket.

"Well, perhaps we can find it at a video store after we deal with this…intrusion."

He then turned away and began dialing on his phone, and Lauren wisely chose to give him his space, silently thankful that she was not crazy and that there really was a tiger in the bathroom.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	4. Dominoes

**Chapter Three:  
****Dominoes**

**Reviewers:**

**Animegirl1994**

**KuramaEnzanBlues**

**Rain chant**

**Maria Antonia**

_**Disclaimer:**_** All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them.**

**_Note:_ To all my readers, thanks so much! Y'all are awesome! **

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**Perceptor:**_ They started the chain reaction!  
_**Jazz:**_ Don't ya just hate sore losers?  
_**- Perceptor and Jazz, "**_**Transformers**_**"**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

It took a long and tedious amount of time for the zoo handlers to get over to the apartment complex. They brought over their animal anesthesiologist and once the animal had been tranquilized, they carted the tiger out and into an awaiting truck, humbly apologizing for any trouble all the while. Not to mention, thoroughly surprised to find that the animal had not damaged anything or hurt anyone while it was out. The zoo's owner had personally come to see the tiger transported safely away, and to make a personal apology both Shuiichi and Lauren for the incident.

"We didn't even know our tiger was missing until we got your call, and we don't know how it got out, either. Someone must have played an expensive and rather mean practical joke on you two."

Even when he walked off to continue surveying their zoo's prize tiger, Lauren could hear him muttering to himself about who would do such a thing. Wondering just how had it gotten into the apartment unseen, let alone locked in the bathroom. If it had been any other situation, Lauren might have found the very idea quite funny.

As it stood, all the cats had also been forcibly removed, although several attendants were scored with scratch marks and gouges by the end of the transition. Most of the other tenants watched the proceedings with growing awe, whispering when they saw the two of them. The handsome young man and the rather timid-looking foreign girl standing close together. Lauren couldn't help but notice their stares, and secretly wishing she could crawl under her bed and hide her face. It was embarrassing enough she heard enough rumors and questions thrown her way for living with the infamous Shuiichi Minamino, but now…

Well, she could only imagine what the neighbors thought of a couple of teenagers living together with a plethora of cats must look like. Surely something outrageously scandalous at best…

It was then that she remembered the night before; the scroll, the procession of cats of all colors and sizes, the leader they called 'King', her saving their 'Prince', even people with decidedly more feline than human features…

And when the circus of voices and faces finally faded away, when they retreated back to the sanctity of their apartment while pushing away the busybodies who wanted to know everything, Lauren retreated to her room. Shuiichi didn't stop her, or ask if she was all right; but then, anyone with good sense would know she'd want to be left alone. She'd discovered a tiger in their bathroom, after all, and it wasn't a huge leap in logic to assume she was still shaken up and didn't want to talk about it.

Still, Lauren was grateful that he didn't bug her like their neighbors tried, pawing at the door and calling their names, begging for juicy details…

As soon as her bedroom door closed, the chaos in the hallway muffled, disappeared, and she was alone. Alone at last in the blissful silence of her room, when barely half an hour ago zoo technicians, an anesthesiologist, an animal wildlife zoo specialist and so many more personnel had loitered around their apartment while Shuichi and her stood outside and watched. Now she was cat-free, and of course, tiger-free, and she was by herself. Here in the quiet, comforting atmosphere of her room, the only place she'd wanted to be in the first place.

Because no sooner had Lauren entered than she began digging through her room for the scroll, the one that the so-called 'Cat Demon King' had given her. It didn't take long to find, and it was thankfully still in decent condition. Maybe the edges were a little skewed from being stuffed in her bag, but the ribbon was still in peak condition and held the scroll intact. She quickly undid it, carefully spread the curling sheet of parchment out on her bed. It was time to find some answers.

The first thing she noticed was kanji off to the left hand corner. An address to her and a proclamation of the gifts she'd receive; it read like a painfully accurate list of the many problems she'd faced that day. Overgrown cat tail weeds, cats following her, the tiger…it was all represented inside the scroll, but that wasn't all. She paled at the next set of 'gifts'; mice and rats, a whole menagerie of them. Lauren certainly didn't want to look forward to finding them crawling over her in her bed, she still had to wipe down her sheets to get rid of the fur…

But that wasn't important now. Now what was important was how to get rid of these infernal, relentless cats before—

A shadow fell over her bed, obscuring the list. She jumped, startled, flicking her gaze towards the window to see the kind but paunchy tabby cat with the warm, human, yellow eyes. He was sitting upright on her windowsill, patting the glass pane with a paw. Waving with the other and smiling at her like this was a social call, and it was perfectly normal for guests to enter a house a few stories off the ground.

She moved towards the window and threw it open, but before she could get a word in edgewise he had lithely jumped into the room and curled up on her bed. She blinked in surprise, a sudden awkwardness freezing her tongue as he continued to beam at her, eyes crinkled in a humanely manner that was just…too familiar and rather creepy.

"Mackenzie-san! I'm so glad you're here! I saw the commotion earlier and couldn't get any closer! What happened to your guardian tiger?"

"G-Guardian? _You_ put that tiger in my bathroom?" She gaped.

He nodded. "Uh-huh, with a little help. But why'd you send him away? He wouldn't have harmed you," the tabby continued, not registering the growing horror and anger on Lauren's usually amicable face. "And the other gifts? Why did they cut down the cat tails? They were a wonderful gift for you!"

"Did you stuff catnip somewhere on me to get all those cats to follow me, too?"

"Demon World catnip. Very strong, it attracts all kinds of cats to you. I'm surprised you didn't notice the split-tails."

_Split-tails?_ Lauren thought, feeling rather dumbfounded. Certainly enough to throw her off track for several moments, before she bristled with newfound fury.

"Look," she began slowly, carefully, trying to keep her exasperation in check despite the impossibly infuriating situation. "I don't really care about cat tail plants. Catnip, no matter where it's from, doesn't do anything to me. All that accomplished was making me feel like a glorified squeaky toy. And that tiger? You stole him from a _zoo_! He could have hurt someone, like my roommate!"

The teenager felt extremely irritated, but then she'd had a hell of a day. First the unceremonious wake up call, the aimless wandering and a would-be job slipped through her fingers, the tiger in her bathroom, having half the afternoon wasted by waiting to get back inside her apartment while the tiger _and_ the cats were ushered out…And he expected her to sit here, thank him and wait for more problematic "gifts"?

Of course, judging by sad, long face of the tabby in front of her, it was probably beginning to dawn on him that she wasn't pleased. Lauren was sure that if cats had tear ducts, he'd probably be fighting back sobs by now. Somehow, she couldn't entirely sympathetize. It was one thing to accidentally put her in danger, it was quite another to drag innocent people like her roommate into the mix.

"You don't…like the gifts?" He asked hesitantly before he turned away, a paw on his furry chin. A nervous gesture she was well acquainted with, having used it enough over her lifetime to make it an old habit, which only served to make her feel uncomfortable. "Oh, dear…the King won't be very happy when he hears of this…"

Lauren frowned and paused, before she placed a gentle hand on the cat's shoulders. "I'm…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. You aren't going to get in trouble because of me, are you?"

"No, no…it's not you. It was us. We don't really know much about humans, but we simply assumed…hmmm. Perhaps we should have asked our Human World brethren what humans really like?"

"We like chocolate," Lauren offered gently and the tabby whirled, something akin to disgust on his face.

"Chocolate? Oh, no, no, no, no. That is not a gift worthy of the savior of our only Prince! You deserve something much more fabulous than…than _chocolate_!"

She retreated her hand out of reflex, experience having taught her that a bristling cat would most likely end in claws sinking into skin if she wasn't wary. Thankfully, the tabby did not flash his claws at her, only looking affronted by her suggestion, and with all the misplaced clarity hindsight could offer her she remembered something about chocolate being poisonous to cats. Whoops?

"Well, then," she started again, attempting to salvage the conversation. "What would you think is an appropriate gift for me? I really wouldn't mind chocolate, but if you can think of something that would be better…that didn't include rats and mice…I might consider it more appropriate."

The tabby's face finally fell into a thoughtful expression, and he turned his face away, a frown pulling at his feline lips. Then his ears suddenly shot up, a bright light in his yellow eyes as he turned to Lauren.

"You could visit our kingdom in the Demon World! Not many humans get to come to the kingdom, let alone the Demon World, but it is a very great honor regardless! It'd be a very practical gift, surely," the tabby babbled excitedly, with a smile that could only be described as crinkling his eyes in a very feline manner.

Lauren stared for a few moments, considering the option and unsure if it should worry or frighten her. "Demon…World?"

"Oh, yes! Our kingdom is a much nicer place than most of the demon world though, of course. Lots of unheeded killings and murders in many parts, but the kingdom is hidden away from the prying eyes of those unruly brutes! You'd be safe as long as you don't cross the borders of the kingdom, and you could meet the Prince again."

She smiled at his enthusiasm despite herself. "The Prince, huh? You mean that spotted cat I saved."

"Oh, yes, that's him all right. Quite a handsome demon, if I do say so myself! He's also quite…how would you humans put it…'cool', too?"

"Cool, huh?" Lauren sighed, and she tilted her head. "I don't know many cool people, at least anymore."

_Except Edward…and maybe my roommate._ When Lauren realized what she'd thought, her cheeks flushed. Her tabby cat companion hadn't noticed, too caught up in his grandiose plans.

"Or, perhaps instead of just meeting him, you could have the greatest honor of all and marry the Prince!"

Lauren was only bobbing her head at this point, embarrassed by her own thoughts. She was not paying attention until she heard the words "marry" and "Prince". Then she blinked several times, staring at the crinkle-eyed cat.

"Wait, what? Me, marry a cat? Oh, no, no, that-that…I can't do that!"

"Why not? The Prince is a charming demon and he'd definitely take care of you. You'd be set for life!"

"Set…for life?" Lauren repeated, uncertain at that ideal. In this day and age? It seemed like a preposterous proposal to consider…especially with a bad economy. But wait…he said 'Demon World'. Was that a secret code for another country? _Where people marry cats?_

She tried picturing herself in a church, in a dress, with the cat she saved in a tuxedo. The image was a strange one to conjure up, and didn't sit well with her.

But…set for life? She closed her eyes, and sunk down into her computer chair. It was nice to pretend her life could someday be so certain. "Marrying a cat, though…that's just…silly. And in my culture, not exactly greeted with open arms."

She laughed, a sudden rebellious feeling making her want to stall on saying the obvious answer to the tabby cat's suggestion. "But then again…I wouldn't have to worry about anything, would I…"

"No, not really. Cats have it best, and cat demons especially!" The tabby grinned at her. Lauren sighed.

"But me, marrying a cat, it's so ridiculous. I mean, you can't have a human marry a cat—wait, where're you going?" Lauren jolted when she heard, rather than saw, the tabby jump down to the ground and she opened her eyes, startled to see the tabby up on the windowsill.

"Great, I'll let the King know that you're coming, then! Oh, he'll be so excited to hear the news! We'll pick you up later tonight, Mackenzie-san."

"W-Wait, I-I-I didn't say—wait!" Lauren was up on her feet in seconds, and dove for the tabby, but the cat had leapt into open air. When she reached the windowsill she looked down, expecting to see the poor, stupid tabby flat on the ground, dead and gone, but no such sight met her eyes. In fact, she saw nothing out of the usual, and no matter how she twisted and turned from side to side, Lauren saw no telling flash of the tabby or his bright fur.

The tabby was gone and she was, once again, alone.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"Oh, God…what am I gonna do, what am I gonna do? Those stupid cats want me to go to some place called 'Demon World'? What the heck is 'Demon World' anyways! And marry a cat demon? What is this, some sort of biblical reference or something? Am I going to get possessed? Oh, please don't let it be that…"

Lauren was, safe to say, in hot water, and as such in a catatonic, frenzied panic. She was about ready to start chewing her fingers off she was so upset, and she paced around her room with restless abandon. Trying to fight off the foreboding chills that swept up and down her spine, rubbing her arms to stave away the gooseflesh forming on her body.

Which was why it was no surprise to anyone but Lauren when she jumped at the sound of her computer's IM system pinging loudly, breaking the oppressive silence the tabby cat's departure had left her with. Her heart was beating loudly as adrenaline shot through her system, leaving her shaky and fearful and paranoid. She went over to her computer desk, ready to slam the thing shut and return to her terrified thoughts when she saw who it was that was messaging her.

"Maybe…maybe she has an idea of what's going on…yeah."

It was a good friend, and a trusted one. Lupin Ferus, a quick-witted marine with a strange sense of fun, but sharp as a tack when it came to humor or advice. Although Lauren wasn't particularly certain on the details, she knew enough to say that Lupin had dealt with some fairly strange things over her colorful military career. If anyone could help her, there was a good chance Lupin might be able to.

Another message popped up under the first, and Lauren had to steady her hands before she began typing out a reply. The message sent, she waited, the soft ticking of a nearby clock nearly driving her out of her mind.

**Lupin:** _So, wait, what now? You're in trouble? What happened?_

The teenager swallowed and nodded, before realizing the obvious and correcting herself. Sometimes it was difficult to translate her thoughts into words when she was so scared, but she did her best.

**Lauren:** _Something's happened and I have no idea what to do about it! Do you think you can give me some help?_

**Lupin:** _Dude…did you sleep with someone? If you did, congrats! I knew you'd get to it! If you're embarrassed about it, I'll beat the guy to a pulp if you want._

Trust Lupin to jump to that embarrassing conclusion. Instead of breaking out into a vivid blush or face plant herself on the keyboard in a dead faint, however, Lauren frowned. This was not the time for jokes, and even if Lupin meant well, she was in serious trouble.

**Lauren:**_No! I didn't sleep with someone! I think I'm going to be kidnapped!_

**Lupin:**_…Kidnapped? Who'd want to do that? You didn't see something that you shouldn't have, did you?_

Even from a continent and an ocean away, she could practically feel the weight of that simple message alone. Like Lupin was saying, in her own way and between the lines, that she'd be coming over to keep Lauren safe. She almost wished Lupin could. After all, years spent in the military probably meant she could handle a bunch of cats….although when she thought of it that way, it just sounded silly.

But that brought up another important question. Who would believe Lauren was going to be kidnapped by a bunch of cats? Her parents certainly wouldn't, nor would her sister Monica. Her roommate definitely wouldn't. He'd think she was crazy. That she had been watching too much television or something.

Lauren bit on her lip as she hesitated, but her resolve was hardened by Lupin's next message.

**Lupin:** _Look, whatever it is, you can tell me. I'm not going to laugh at you, even if it's the weirdest thing in the world. Well, okay, I'll laugh if it's like, a giant ant or something, but come on. I'm serious. If someone wants to kidnap you, that's a really serious thing to not tell anyone. Tell someone at least, if not me._

**Lauren:** _Cats._

There was a long pause and she stared at her blinking cursor, and the single word she'd typed out without even thinking. Finally, a single line of reply came.

**Lupin:** _Cats?_

**Lauren:** _…Demon cats. They walk and talk like people! I saved a really weird cat the other day from getting hit by a truck, but afterwards, it started talking to me! Thanking me for saving his life, and then later the other night, all these weird cat-looking people were walking around the streets! Their KING came to thank me, saying I rescued his son, a cat_prince_for God's sakes, and now they want me to marry him! I don't want to marry a cat!_

It all came in a rush before she had a chance to stop herself. Lauren knew if she didn't get it out, she'd only annoy herself and Lupin would only nag her for details until she finally deflected. Or made an excuse to get offline. Which, in turn, would only annoy Lupin, for sure. And then she'd would be back to square one, where she'd be panicking, not able to think of any other way out of this very, very odd predicament. For a while, she found herself wondering if there was any difference, as she anxiously awaited a response while minute after minute passed by slow as molasses.

Outside her bedroom, she heard the bathroom door open and moments later, close. She flinched, shifting closer to her computer, as if to hide the screen, turning back moments later and to her relief seeing a reply. She deflated when she saw, disappointingly enough, it was only a single sentence.

**Lupin:** _Demon cats, huh?_

Seconds later, another reply went underneath the first.

**Lupin:**_You'd better get some friends over there to help you, I can't do much from my end, hun. As much as I'd like to…it's not my jurisdiction._

Before she could ask any questions or reply to this strange and—Lauren felt—very cryptic answer, Lupin quickly jotted another message down before her icon (an artful picture of a bloody-muzzled wolf smile-snarling at the camera, what on earth was with that woman and gory wolves…) dimmed. She'd either been kicked off by a faulty signal, or more likely, signed off. Something Lauren couldn't believe as she stared at her friend's last message.

**Lupin:** _There isn't much time on your end, so you'd better think of something fast. Talk to your roommate, Shuiichi. You can trust him, believe me. I've gotta get going. I got a mission with my name on it calling my phone. Talk to you later._

"But…I…I won't…"

Lauren slumped in her computer chair, staring at her computer screen in disbelief.

A few seconds later, Shuiichi's phone went off somewhere outside in the apartment.

**OoOoOoOoOoO **

"I already know they're after her, as well as the cat demon prince she saved. I was there when it happened."

"Well, you sucked at keeping an eye on her that day. And you'd better do something about what's coming up, fox-boy. I'm serious. I put her in your charge, you'd better take care of her."

"You're caring an awful lot for a human you've never met before."

"Pffft. Please. I cared about each and every one of y'all before I even met ANY of y'all, so you don't get to say _shit_. Just keep an eye on her or it'll be _your_ pretty little head that'll be rollin' next."

Kurama chuckled at the voice on the other end. He could practically hear her bristling.

"You think it's funny? I'll come over there right now and chomp on you!"

"Please, by all means, if you can manage to catch me first. Or explain afterward to Koenma why one of his Detectives has been brutally mutilated."

"You don't work for him anymore. At least, not as actively as you used to, remember?"

"And neither do you."

"More than you do. I practically have a badge by now!"

He paused and chuckled again. "Touché. I will give you that much leeway in the conversation."

"You'd better," the other replied. Then the seriousness in their tone came back. "And stop deflecting. I get enough of that from House."

"I will keep her safe. You don't have to worry about her."

"I shouldn't have to, but I do." A pause. "Kurama, I think I'll come down, just in case."

He was startled, but not completely so. He had a distinct, if vague, feeling that she would say something like that. "To Japan? That's a long way from New York."

"Well, me and my little friends are restless. I'll give old Binky-Breath a call and zip on by."

"You'd better bring some of your restless friends then, just in case. Does she know what you look like?"

"She's seen a few photos…_human_ photos." The last was added in haste, as if to reassure nothing was revealed.

"Then stay in the shadows. I'll have Yusuke and Kuwabara come over tonight, and Hiei will wait with you. Please refrain from killing each other," He allowed her to mull that over before adding, "We won't let them get her."

"Good. Then I'll see you later tonight _personally_ when things settle."

"Sounds fair enough. Oh…and Lupin?"

"Yeah?"

"Threaten me again, and you won't like the consequences." He said softly. There was a pause on the other end.

"Tch. Fox-boy, I'll say what I want, to whoever I want, whenever I want. You aren't an exception." Lupin laughed on the other end, and for a moment, he felt as though he was losing her. She was slipping over the edge, not completely there even if she sounded it, if only slightly. Then the course of sanity returned and her laughter died. "You know I won't do anything to ya. You could whip my ass with two shakes of your own fancy tail and I wouldn't be able to do a thing about it!"

He heard the chortling teasing in her tone, that same undefined disregard for herself or her fragile mental state before the line went dead. He turned his phone off and sighed, before stiffening when he heard a soft voice call his name. He turned towards the timid-looking figure of Lauren, who was peeping at him from behind the corner of the hallway. He smiled at her.

"Yes, what is it, Lauren?"

"I…I think…I think I need to tell you something…"

Even though he smiled and acted as though he'd been unaware of anything amiss as she sat down and hesitantly began speaking, he knew what was troubling her before she began. He gently coaxed her to continue, the façade of understanding and openness on his face, when really, he knew all there was to her situation. Or at the very least, knew very well about what was coming after her.

He knew he had done the right thing in calling Lupin to contact Lauren. After all, Lupin was the one who had originally contacted him to keep an eye on her. That was one of the reasons he had become her roommate in the first place. He found it strange that Lupin was acting so protectively, but, after meeting the young woman, well…he was beginning to see why.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


	5. Taken

**Chapter Four:  
Taken**

**Reviewers:**

**KuramaEnzanBlues**

**Animegirl1994**

**Anoni-Cat**

**Scurryfunger**

**Polar Light**

**Sillylittlenothing**

**Rain chant**

**Marie Antonia**

_**Disclaimer:**_** All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them. **

**Note: Ack, I totally apologize for the **_**huge**_** gap in updates, I've been rather busy with other projects, college, and work! **

**Also, for those who are relatively new to Lupin's appearance, this is the same Lupin from _Crash_, another of my stories (ah, yes, shameless self-promotion, ha!). For those who wish to see her somewhat less-than-obscure-starts, I'd suggest going there. :3**

**To **_**Marie Antonia**_**, holy crap, I'm sorry, I didn't notice the mistake! XD I feel terrible, really, I do! It's fixed here now, though! Thanks for point it out for me. :3**

**Thanks to all my awesome readers! I really appreciate you sticking with me! 8D**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_It's been a big day, what with the_abduction_, and all.__**  
**_**- Simon, "**_**Firefly**_**"**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

She was pacing by the time she had finished her rambling, nonsensical story. The cat she had saved, how it had talked, the cats from the other night, the tiger, the tabby, the Cat Demon King…

It had sputtered into nonsense at the end and she had to stop at last, hugging herself. She hadn't looked at him fully in the face the whole time she spoke, afraid to see skepticism in his eyes, a look of ridicule on his face, until at last she couldn't stand it anymore and snatched a glance at Shuiichi. The expression on his face surprised her. It was a calculating gaze, similar to the ones she'd see on his face when he was working on his homework, but…more intense. Almost dangerously so.

Then she noticed his eyes, which weren't just the vivid emerald green like she'd always thought. Instead, they seemed to have darkened along with his expression, something deeper than what she was used to.

Lauren swallowed thickly at this realization, feeling pinned under his gaze until she finally forced herself to look away. "Do you…do you believe me?"

Her question was so quiet, barely audible. She dreaded the answer, even if she knew she had to ask anyways, but Shuiichi was still studying her, and she shivered under that inscrutable gaze of his. He stood at last, and crossed the distance between them. His long strides carried him quickly over and then he was at her side, placing a hand gently on her shoulder. She looked up at him and he smiled genuinely at her, although with a tinge of inexplicable sadness.

"There are…many things in this world that are not…normal. And there are people who encounter these things, not on a daily basis, but close enough to count. You happened to have crossed paths with one of those unusual things, Lauren."

He motioned for her to sit and she complied, albeit nervously. He sat beside her and sighed, almost too quietly for her to even hear.

"What you came across really are demons, Lauren. They come from the Makai, or Demon World, and these particular demons…they've hidden themselves even from other demons. Only cat demons and their kin are allowed into their kingdom, and perhaps those who have been given…extended invitations." He nodded to her and she knit her brows in confusion. He wasn't serious, was he? She wasn't sure whether she wanted to laugh and call him insane or bolt for her room, lock the door, and curl up under her bed covers.

Lacking the ability to think of such things on the spur of the moment, Lauren settled for gaping at him in near speechless disbelief. A problem that soon remedied itself, however when she finally said, "Demons…are real?"

He hesitated before nodding. "Yes…they are. There are many demons, and while most are…malignant, there are few that are more courteous towards humans, friendly even. I know a few myself."

She mentally stumbled through uncertain memories, and Yusuke and Kuwabara came to mind, conversations taking a decidedly darker tint in light of this revelation. "Are…the two guys you were out with the other day…are they demons?"

He shook his head. "No…Kuwabara is human, but his spiritual awareness is above average than most humans. He's quite aware of the Demon World, as is Yusuke. Yusuke himself is not technically a demon, but he has demon ancestry in his blood."

As Lauren tried wrapping her head around this mind-boggling information, she was almost tempted to compliment him on such a well-executed prank in a last ditch attempt to right her suddenly tilted view of reality. His serious face, however, said otherwise. He'd always had a good poker face, though…maybe it was still possible for some Japanese game show host to pop out of nowhere and tell her that she'd been duped or something?

However, nothing happened, and slowly, she began to accept the impossible truth. But with this acceptance came an entirely new problem, one that left her shivering in fear at the implications.

"Are…are you…a demon?"

Innocently worded as the question was, Shuiichi seemed thrown off for a few seconds and he hesitated, that same calculating gaze making her more nervous than Lauren could stand. Which, really, was all the answer she needed.

Lauren lowered her gaze to her hands in her lap. "If that…was the case…" She looked back up, feeling very awkward for asking. "Why would you want to come here? I mean…if you are a demon…not that I'm saying you are, of course, even if you may very well be…then shouldn't you live in the Demon World?"

He was quiet for a long time, as if trying to find the right words to use in this situation. Lauren waited, but gradually began to regret her decision to tell him this in the first place, shifting uncomfortably in her seat before muttering, "You don't have to answer…just, please forget I asked."

"No, no…it's…it's all right. My answer is that it's…complicated. And it is a story for another time, I'm afraid. Right now, we have to worry about keeping you safe. I'll call Yusuke and Kuwabara to come over." He gave her a reassuring smile and reached over, covering his hand over hers and squeezed. "We _will_ keep you safe, Lauren, I promise."

Somehow, those simple words seemed to quell her uneasiness.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

She could see them all inside the apartment, watching a flickering TV together. Yusuke egging Kuwabara on. Lauren sitting quietly on the couch. Kurama paying a delivery man for pizza. Meanwhile Lupin grinned, crouching on a tree branch outside the apartment complex for the dorm students, her tail swaying behind her as she appreciated the bird's eye view she now had of the area. Learning reconnaissance with the Wreckers paid off quite remarkably. There was tension in the air, she picked up. The air still smelt of cat tails, as another thing she noticed. Something she vaguely remembered what Shuiichi had told her about earlier.

"What in the seven hells are you doing here, wolf?"

"Well, well, well, it's good to see you too, Hiei!" She chirruped back cheerfully.

"Don't you have brood to take care of back home?"

Lupin gave him a quick, amused glance. Ah, Hiei. Always the sour puss, she mused. He narrowed his red eyes at her, and they almost seemed to gleam in the coming twilight hour.

"Allen's there right now. And he knows that I'm on a job right now."

"Does Koenma know you're invading his territory?"

The underlying words were clear enough and Lupin bobbed her head a little, cupped in her hand as she answered, "Sure, we'll say that." She nodded towards the interior of the little dorm. "You know about the situation, then?"

"Why else would I be here?" He snorted at the werewolf.

Lupin shrugged. "Just checking. So. Information, might you have, perchance?"

"Stop speaking like an idiot."

She chuckled, catching a glance of him once more. "Information. Do you have any?"

He leaned against the trunk, eyes narrowed at her before focusing towards the apartment. The leaves were thick and plenty, covering them up just enough while still giving them the perfect vantage of the young adults gathered below. It would be unfortunate indeed to have such a good position given away.

"Cat demons are after her. Kurama has given me enough information from what he's gleaned from the girl…after you made sure she talked with him."

"You're welcome," she chanted in a sing-song voice, a silly grin on her face.

"I never thanked you."

"You will."

He simply gave her "the glare". The one where he obviously wished he could set her ablaze with the willpower of his eyes alone, or at least melted her brain in the process of doing so. He finally settled for, "Unlikely."

"Quite staring at me like that, or I'm going to have smoke coming out of my ears any second now. I like these ears, very fuzzy."

"It would be an improvement."

Before she could get another word out, he was gone in a quick wink of an eye, a black blur to her eye. Lupin chuckled once more, head cocked to the side as she left her free hand to fiddle with the spherical items at her waist. She closed her eyes with a sigh.

"Good luck, Lauren, you'll need it…"

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Night had finally come, the sky outside dark and foreboding. Despite the attempts to eat the food Shuiichi had ordered, or watch the comedy flick Kuwabara had brought, or enjoy the raucous commentary Yusuke was making, Lauren couldn't settle down. She felt as if someone was constantly watching her, waiting for the opportune moment or something to that effect. Before she had felt somewhat at ease, but in due time that nagging feeling came over her again, and the young woman was on edge once more.

She knew the others were nervous as well. That this whole thing was a ruse of sorts, and the time was being watched carefully. They were on edge, ready to spring at the sudden change in the wind if that's what it took.

She wasn't sure what to expect. Would the cats just line up in a parade like they'd done the other night? Or would they simply appear like they had earlier that day with the tiger and house cats?

With any luck, neither of those options would come to pass. Lauren could only hope that they would realize what she'd really said and leave her alone.

At a quiet lull in the movie, her cell phone rang from the next room and she jumped. Bolting up to get it, she quickly pressed a hand to her chest, breathing deeply to slow her heartbeat and smiling apologetically, excused herself to get it. She was trying not to notice the curious looks they directed her way. _I forgot how loud it was…I wonder who it is. Probably Mom… _

Her room was dark, but the light of her phone was enough to go by. She saw who it was and smiled a little. Her mother, of course. She had picked it up, thumb at the ready to press the answer button when she noticed something from the corner of her eye. Something shifting, and she turned in time to see a black, hovering _thing_ in front of her, with green, lantern bright eyes shining straight into hers. It took her another second to realize that the black shadow thing was a cat's face, melded into the shadows as if it had come from the darkness itself. It's body so sleek and streamlined that she wasn't sure it was even fur so much as skin akin to something rubbery like a dolphin's. The cat opened its mouth in a grin and at the same time a cry of alarm leapt to her lips, cruelly cut off by the shadow cat's paws.

Her phone fell from her shaking hand as she reacted on instinct, a deep-rooted drive to survive in full gear as her heart pounded so loud in her chest she thought it would burst. Her room disappeared, and she was suddenly engulfed in swirling darkness, the roar of rushing air nearly drowning out the shouts, yells, and calls of her name. A hand suddenly grabbed her and the darkness, just for a moment, disappeared and she was looking at the ceiling of her room. She caught a glimpse of a face.

"Kuwabara?"

"Hang on, we'll get you out! Let her go!" He yelled, and she heard the sounds of the others, a crash of glass from somewhere, a snarl of some beast that sent chills up and down her spine. But Kuwabara was pulling her back towards the hallway, with hands hooked under her armpits with one arm snaked around her waist, gaining more leverage with each step. She kicked, struggling to get free as the tremendous force holding her evaporated, the brief triumphant thought that she had escaped darting through her mind as her upper torso was suddenly in the hallway, hips now wriggling loose.

But of course, it wasn't meant to be, as the darkness engulfed her once again. She saw it rushing past her like a current of water, slamming into Kuwabara and grappling him as well, yanking him forward. She heard him yell before her ears were once again drowned out of all sound, and she knew of nothing more.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"_Wo de ma he ta de fong kung de wai sheng dou_! Did I _not_ put her in your charge, you _huan dan?_! This wasn't a baby-sitting job, this was bodyguard detail! Like, Presidential or even Primus permit it, Prime-level, dammit! What part of keep her safe _didn't_ you understand?"

An agitated werewolf was a funny thing, sometimes. The reason it was funny was because this particular werewolf was barely five foot tall when reverted to a relatively normal human height. To say in the least, Lupin was rather amusing when she got into a rant, the fur on her tail pointed on end, making it look like a poofy feather duster, her ears pinned back made her resemble an irate puppy rather than a ferocious wolf. But, there were times when it wasn't as humorous, especially when the fur along her arms, her back, her legs, and her torso began to sprout, her snout began to protrude, her legs began to lengthen, her teeth larger than a human mouth should carry and both eyes began to glitter a dangerous gold.

All in all, it looked like she was just a step away from blasting out the fur and turning into a snarling, frothing beast, and currently, Kurama did not want another big, furry animal in his home, thank you very much. The tiger's fur had been hard enough to deal with.

Another string of a mixture of Chinese, Spanish, Japanese, a few choice Cybertronian curses, and English sprung forth from the werewolf's mouth as she stared down those gathered in Kurama's college apartment. The blue of her right eye had all but disappeared, the gold of her bestial side taking over, matching the gold of her left. They could practically see the shimmer of heat coming off of her in waves, similar in a fashion to when Hiei was building up his power; only hers was more raw in strength, less defined and contained. While Hiei had control and even poise at times, Lupin was a barely contained wildfire ready to raze the earth, like a particularly powerful gun that needed to be pointed in the direction when it was to be shot and then run like hell and hope it didn't take you out when it blew up in the end.

When Lupin was tired of staring down and cursing out the others, she turned down the hallway, looking into the room where Lauren had disappeared into not even ten minutes ago. It looked as if a bomb had gone off inside. Everything was charred and black, remnants of a battle hard-fought but quickly lost. It reminded her of trenches on distant planets, of war, of fighting alongside Autobots. Wreckers. The werewolf leaned on the doorway, claws digging into the frame as she inhaled the scent of the shadow-cat, but it did nothing to calm her nerves as she stared at the blackened room. She turned away, a tremble of anger rippling through her body.

"Well, gee, we didn't exactly know they'd have things popping out from the shadows, so sorry we didn't take that into account! You got any better ideas?"

"Genkai, you _le se qing wa cao de liu mang_!"

Yusuke blinked at her momentarily, boggled before his face melted back into another wave of righteous rage and pigheadedness stubbornness. "Okay, first off, quit with the Chinese, I don't understand a damned word you're saying! Secondly—,"

"Secondly, nothing. She's right. We could have taken her to Genkai's. A weak shadow spirit such as that could not have breached her temple's defenses."

"Not so weak that it captured the buffoon along with the girl. Now we have two people to worry for, not one."

Eyes turned to the form of Hiei, standing at the end of the hallway only a foot short of Lupin. The fur on her body slowly began to recede, the blue in her right eye slowly bleeding through again. She took long, even breathes, calming herself before she turned away, giving Kurama a glance. "Start searching. _Dong le ma_? I'll take to the air."

Then the werewolf was gone in a flash of shadow wisps and acrid smoke, sparks dancing along the ground where she had once stood. There was a collective silence for a full minute. Kurama looked past Hiei where Lauren's room stood. "We were too lenient. We will not allow that same mistake to be made when we find Lauren again."

"Right, and we're gonna find her how?" Yusuke grumbled, eyeballing the spot where Lupin had disappeared from. "And what's her problem? She's making us take care of a person she's never met before!"

"This person is someone special to her, Yusuke. Someone who she has not met, yes, but someone who is not connected to the military, the Makai, the Black Order, the BPRD, the Wreckers and Tony Stark…Lauren is one the few human friends she has that makes her feel…normal."

"Normal. She wants to feel normal." Yusuke repeated disbelievingly, as if the concept was so bizarre, it barely merited being mentioned.

"For a lack of a better term, yes. It is the most logical reason why she feels so protective of her. That is why, when she found out Lauren would be attending school here, she asked me to keep an eye on her." Kurama smiled a little wistfully, eyes soft. "She is one of the few things in her life that has some resemblance to normalcy, I suppose, although this recent event makes me wonder." He gave another pause before adding, "And not to mention, it is the Marine's training and quotation of 'leave no one behind', is it not?"

Yusuke hesitated, glancing back at the charred room, before he nodded, as if making an unspoken decision and turning back to Kurama with some unreadable emotion in his eyes. "Well, I guess we'd better get started. It's probably gonna be a bitch finding that shadow demon."

"Not necessarily," Kurama said with a rather wry smile lightly graced his lips, almost going unnoticed. At first Yusuke didn't quite catch on, although the gleam in Hiei's eyes told Kurama that the fire demon had, but after a few glances between Kurama and the room, the half-demon blinked several times before a wide grin slowly spread across his face.

"You damned fox, you."

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Why was it so warm, and breezy and _bright_? She had to marvel at this, considering the contrast to where she'd been before.

Lauren slowly sat up, surprised at how soft and springy whatever she was lying on was, and blinked blearily around her. A thin fog surrounded her, gently pushed aside by a light breeze and swirling around her, sunlight began to pierce through the haze.

She couldn't help but gasp a little at the sight that began to unfold before her. A long, rolling field, with grassy knolls and low, little huts lay before her. A large castle loomed in the distance, the towers and battlements like the iron wrought spikes on a fancy-looking gate piercing the cool, blue skies. She could only estimate that the largest spire rose hundreds of feet in the air, the cold stone looking strange in a place so vibrant with color. Farther behind the castle were mountains surrounding the valley, which was partially covered by a thick forest. The sky was clear and bright with the occasional cloud, the sun shining merrily down on her, and Lauren gaped openly, unable to tear her gaze from the strangely beautiful scene before her.

She had only seen pictures of castles in history books in school, never up close. Even then they were always in ruins, never in a condition such as the one she was looking at now, well-cared and magnificent as it was. Hardly the look of something abandoned. It wasn't until she heard the mewing that she finally tore her gaze from the castle and back down to what she assumed was the village, finding an even stranger sight. People milled around the lands, except they weren't people of any kind, they were all cats. All of them walking on hinds legs, some wearing clothes as a human would. There were humanoid looking cats, some that more closely resembled people than others, but for the general census, they were all feline in nature.

_The Demon Cat Kingdom_, she suddenly remembered, quivering at the memory of her kidnapping. _Am I dreaming or am I really here? _

The land before her was expansive, enough to take her breath away. It was the strangest, yet it was an iconic, sight Lauren had ever seen, and she hesitated to move forward, standing there looking as several tawny, spotted, striped, and plain-colored cats scurried around the fields below. She spotted plenty that weren't naturally colored where she was from, shades of blues and greens and pinks and so on, and even those strange humanoid figures with the features and patterns on their skins that belonged on cats only.

Her head swam as she tried to process this, another bizarre occurrence in her increasingly confusing week, and she sat down slowly and carefully. _I can't be here. This place…can't exist! Cats don't live in castles, not like kings and princes anyway, and there are no villages that consist of cats and human-looking cat people either! Maybe orphanages that people build for the cats, but then again…ugh! This is too much…_

She shuddered at the thought of the strange, rubbery-looking shadow cat that had grabbed her in what seemed only moments ago. Lauren wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly hyperaware of her surroundings, a tingle spiking up and down her spine while the hair on the back of her neck and arms rose up. It hadn't hurt her, per say, but it had simply grabbed her like she was light as air and whisked her away to some unknown kingdom. The word _demons_ ghosted across her mind and Lauren shivered again, breaking out in gooseflesh. They really exist, she thought with a slight grimace. They really, really exist.

Suddenly she thought of Lupin. She didn't know why, or how the young woman had crossed her mind, but she suddenly thought of the advice she'd been given from Lupin earlier that day, right before telling her odd roommate everything that had happened in the last forty-eight hours. Had she known about Shuiichi?

The thought struck her like lightning. _Oh, my God…is she a demon too? But-but _why_ is she helping me? Why would she even live with humans and _trick_ me like that? How _could_ she?_

Fear and anger intermingled with one another as the young woman dug her nails into her arms, not sure whether she wanted to cry or shout in frustration or do both. Thankfully, her thoughts were jolted, her attention diverted elsewhere when she heard a familiar voice calling to her.

"Lauren! Hey, Lauren! Hey, over here!"

She perked at the sound, and turned her head to see the familiar and extremely welcome face of Kuwabara jogging towards her, waving an arm in greeting, a relieved grin on his face. When he came to, he looked barely winded, even if a light sheen of sweat dotted his face. She remembered what Shuiichi had said about him, how he was just as human as she was, but his spiritual awareness was more acute than hers. Did that include his physical status was higher than most humans as well?

Despite her fear, she was glad to see him. Even if she didn't know him all too well, she simply comforted to see _someone_ that was _familiar_ to her. She stood immediately and smiled in relief.

"I'm glad I found you. Whatever that thing was, at least we weren't separated too much."

She gave him a curious look. "Yeah, that is pretty convenient. I wonder why…"

Kuwabara grinned widely, his chest puffing slightly in pride as he held his hands before him, as if gripping a baseball bat or a sword. The air crackled, sparks dancing around his hands. Lauren backed away in shock, eyes wide as suddenly, a spike of what seemed like lightning formed in his hands, vaguely assuming the shape of a sword. The air finally began to settle, but the sword that looked lightning—_or energy,_ Lauren thought in awe—remained as solid as Kuwabara or herself.

"I might've taken a jab or two at it with this baby. I didn't think it'd drop us out of the sky like that, though. At least you're not hurt."

Just as quickly as Kuwabara had summoned the lightning-energy sword, it dissipated into nothingness, but Lauren could still feel the crackle of raw energy in the air. Once again she felt chills worming up and down her spine and skin, swallowing dryly as she was suddenly aware that everything around her was very real. The shadow-cat thing really _had_ grabbed her from her own apartment, demons really _were_ real and the cats of this kingdom really _did_ want her to marry some demon cat prince.

The fear on her face must've shown, and Kuwabara, the poor guy, looked flabbergasted and distraught at her expression. He waved his arms in a disarming fashion, and blustered, "Oh, please don't be scared about that, I didn't mean to scare you, I-I…"

He stopped suddenly when she laughed. It wasn't a happy or giddy laugh, but a rather mad laugh mingling with intermittent sobs. "This…this isn't fair! I don't want to marry a _cat_! Why did that cat have to turn out to be some sort of-of, d-demon _prince_?"

A few tears squeezed out of her eyes and Lauren sucked in a deep breath to control herself. She couldn't just go around sobbing like a child now, she told herself. She wiped furiously at the tears, scrubbing her face dry and trying to fight to keep her throat from blocking up like usual when she cried. Kuwabara surprised her when he put a gentle, if rather large, hand on her shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She looked up at him, hiccupping, feeling about as miserable as a rain-soaked stray.

"It's gonna be okay, I promise. Kurama and the others won't just leave us here. They'll find their way to this place."

She blinked a few times, brow furrowing and she dipped her lips into a frown. "K-Kurama? Who's that?"

It was Kuwabara's turn to be surprised and once more, he garnered the look of awkwardness quite well. "Er…you mean, you don't know?"

"Know what? I don't exactly have a Masters in demonology one-oh-one," she replied in a deadpan voice. She knew she was being slightly blunt and straightforward, but dammit, she just got kidnapped by some sort of shadow. She believed now was a decent time to give herself some leeway in her manners. _Just this once, though,_ she told herself.

Kuwabara sighed, scratching the back of his head. "Kurama…is Shuiichi. What I mean to say is Shuiichi's real name is Kurama. I'm pretty sure you know that he's—," He hesitated. Lauren dropped her gaze.

"A…demon, right?" She finished quietly.

Kuwabara nodded, his face serious as he regarded her. "He's a pretty strong one, too. And he's real smart, so I doubt he'd just give up finding us. That's why you shouldn't lose any hope. Okay?"

The thought of Shuiichi (Kurama? She was still boggled at the double-standard name) not giving up, well…she was sure that much was true. He was tenacious when it came to his school work, she found out, so she was quite sure in other aspects of his life, which he would tackle with the same cool, calm and collected attitude he usually portrayed. Lauren slowly nodded, not even realizing.

"I…guess so…" She furrowed her brow a little, and the thought of her supposed friend came into play once more. "Kuwabara…do you know someone named Lupin Ferus?"

She knew he did once the light of recognition grew bright in his eyes. "Uh…uh, how-how do you know—,"

"Mackenzie-san! Mackenzie-san, there you are!"

Both Kuwabara and Lauren snapped their attention towards the voice that drifted their way, and Lauren saw that the tabby cat from earlier was waltzing towards them on his hind legs, waving a paw at them. What was even stranger, however, was how big he was. It was like he had suddenly grown three times his size, he was almost as tall, perhaps even taller, than her! She gaped at the newly grown cat in shock, knowing she was staring, but at the same time couldn't bear to look away. It was like a train wreck in progress you just couldn't look away from.

Behind the tabby cat was an assembly of the same bronze-skinned, leopard-spotted human-cat people she had seen the other night, four of them carrying an empty dais on their shoulders. On either side of the human-cat people were regular cats, although they were human-sized like the tabby was. They were all solemn-faced as they approached. All were solemn except for, predictably, the happy and pudgy little tabby who grinned at her with gleaming fangs. Regarding her through his half-lidded yellow eyes, whiskers raising up higher, he called, "Mackenzie-san, I'm so glad we found you! I'm so sorry about the abrupt drop-off, our Schrodinger's Shadow had come across some complications on its way into the Kingdom."

"Schrodinger's…Shadow? You mean that rubber-looking cat?"

"It's technically a shadow, Mackenzie-san, hence the name. It's consisted of, as the name suggests, shadows that are so highly condensed, it becomes a solid, but only for short periods of times. It's the only way to make a quick getaway into the Kingdom, if you're in a pinch or trying to summon someone in." A glimmer passed in the cat's eyes, or was that just the way the afternoon sun had just shone in it when he tilted his head?

"Schrodinger? What the hell is that?" Kuwabara finally blurted, narrowing his eyes at the tabby. In an instant, the tabby turned his eyes on him, and his ears went back, fur slightly spiking.

"Who're you?" From the tabby's tone, he had just went from cheerful to I'm-ready-to-claw-some-eyes-out-now.

"I'm the guy who's keeping an eye on Lauren. If you don't like it, tough luck. No way she's going anywhere alone in this place."

She turned to protest, but the serious look on his face made her stop. That is, she froze until he gave her a quick wink and slight smile. The message was clear enough, and Lauren shut up, and turned back. "Um…yes, he's…my protector. I really do appreciate the tiger you had sent, but I prefer to choose my own guardian, if that's all right with you."

The tabby regarded Kuwabara another moment, before his fur flattened, his ears perked and the happy grin was replaced on his muzzle. "Well, I suppose that'll be all right, Mackenzie-san. We don't usually allow uninvited humans into the Kingdom like this."

"What do you do with the uninvited ones?" She asked, feeling slightly squeamish all of a sudden at the answer.

"We execute them," the tabby said breezily before he pivoted sharply on his paws, tail held high as he motioned for the cat-people to lower the dais. "Come on, the King is waiting for your arrival at your castle!"

"My…castle?"

"Why, yes of course, Mackenzie-san! You're the future princess and King's daughter-in-law! We have a lot to plan, so we must hurry!"

Lauren glanced at Kuwabara, her confidence lost again. He reached over and gave her a somewhat awkward pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll be fine. Our friends will make sure of that, okay? They'll be here soon." He said quietly, hoping that the cats didn't hear. They made no hint that they did, and if they had, they didn't say or do anything that indicated they did. Lauren hesitated before she nodded, swallowing her fear back down. Taking a deep breath, she turned towards the expectant tabby and the assemblage of cats and cat-people.

"A-all right, then…I guess we should go meet the King, then, huh?"

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

**I realize the complete redundancy of incorporating Western feudal systems into the Japanese culture. I'm completely ignoring this for the sake of a story fueled by crack!fandom giddiness, and of course, pure fan-made entertainment. I'm sure if I were to truly go for a real feudal fairy tale, I'd edge towards more historical facts based on the actual culture's hierarchy and empirical statuses. XD**

**Also, notes! **

**Lauren is difficult for me to write. She is Arktos' character, and as such I am borrowing her (with permission of course), and Arktos has made a painfully polite character, at which I am quite unfamiliar with (manners? What're those?) but I willing to learn through the process of trial and error! So far, Arktos likes my rendition of Lauren, and I'm happy that I'm doing Lauren justice!**

**Second! **

**Lupin is, of course as noted from above, from my story **_**Crash**_**. There are spoilers here, which I also realize the redundancy of posting here, but the only way this story would work is if I made here feature here is if she is from the post!**_**Crash**_** timeline. If you want to see how Lupin started out, as well as see how many fandoms I can cram into one story (which is a lot, I can tell ya) then go meander on over and read **_**Crash**_**! We've got **_**Hellboy**_**, **_**How to Train Your Dragon**_**, and **_**Fullmetal Alchemist**_**, and hopefully soon, I'll have our favorite Reiki Tantei boys popping on it, too! Don't worry, they'll have shining moments there, too. ;3**

**Translations (taken from the Wikiquote page for **_**Firefly**_**/**_**Serenity**_**): **

_**Wo de ma he ta de fong kung de wai sheng dou**__—_**Holy mother of God and all her wacky nephews**

_**Huan dan—**_**bastard**

_**Le se qing wa cao de liu mang**_**—Garbage frog-humping son of a bitch**

_**Dong le ma**_**—Are we clear here?**


	6. Stakes

**Chapter Five:  
Stakes**

**Reviewers:**

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_**Disclaimer:**_** All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them. **

**Note: Thanks to all my awesome readers! I really appreciate you sticking with me! 8D**

**And I know, I'm terrible with updating. Life hit me pretty hard for a while. Work's a bitch, I'm always exhausted and to those who don't follow my other stories and only this one, I'm pregnant, so that also pulls me down the road of exhaustion even further. And it's a girl, for those who might ask. Fear for me. xD**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

_In the eyes of a cat, all things belong to cats._**  
- Anonymous**

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

Kurama's little smile remained on his face as he gently reached for a seed interwoven into his red hair. Reverting it back to a complete seed, disentangling it and pulling it into view, Yusuke ventured closer, his brash grin still firmly in place. "So…what is it?"

"Obviously a seed, Yusuke. I'm sure you can see that for yourself."

Yusuke pulled a face at him. Kurama chuckled. "It is a tracker. I rarely use them, but they're good for several instances: interdimensional traveling is one of them."

Here, he lost Yusuke quite thoroughly. Even Hiei perked and raised a brow in question. After a moment of wracking his brain for a similar explanation, however, Yusuke finally ventured forth with a reply of, "So…it's like a little microchip that tracks people down, like in those American films with the spies and stuff?"

"Similarly, yes, along those lines. But not quite entirely." He allowed it to sprout once more, and little tendrils of vines wriggled in the air like limbs. He replaced it where he had taken it from. "I implant a part of my _youki_ into the seed and the best way to describe it, is that they emit a pulse of that same energy, a thread connecting itself to me, so that I may track its movements and location, even through interdimensional travel such as the Schrodinger's Shadow." He closed his eyes momentarily. "I can feel the one I had planted on Lauren right now. We'll be able to find her."

"That's…rather creepy and morbid. It's on Lauren now?"

"It's attached to her clothing, specifically, but yes. It was a recent idea I had implemented and I am glad I had, Yusuke. Otherwise, we wouldn't be on our way to finding her or Kuwabara." He paused as he reopened his eyes and looked at the detective with another wry, if shielded, smile. "These are very rare to find, so you can see why I rarely use them. Once they have been used the first time, they're useless for future endeavors, and they only last twenty-four hours after being activated."

At that last bit of information, Yusuke became rigid. "Then what the hell are we waiting for? Let's get moving!"

"Have you forgotten we need a way into the Makai, Detective? Contact Koenma and have him form a portal for us." Hiei said, eyeing the wreckage that was once Lauren's room once again.

"And if you can, please have Koenma send a team to clean this mess as well. It would not do if our student superintendent came by for a random inspection and saw this. I'm sure he'll been put on edge for a while, considering our incident with the cats and the tiger in our bathroom earlier this afternoon." Kurama added.

Yusuke paused at that last bit. "A…tiger…in the bathroom."

"Yes." Kurama nodded, looking quite serious. Yusuke eyed him for a moment, and it seemed he was trying to remain stoic and hold back his laughter, but was failing quite miserably.

"As in…there was a-a jungle cat in your fucking bathroom? Oh, my God. _The Hangover_!"

"Lauren made the same reference, yes. I'm afraid I failed to see that film."

"What, are you _kidding_ me? That's one of the best movies I saw when we were in America with Lupin and the rest of the gang!" Yusuke cackled as he added, "Oh, Kuwabara will love that one! '_There's a tiger in the bathroom!_' Ha!"

"Yusuke, as amusing as this all is, please focus." Kurama reminded, to which Yusuke quickly sobered and nodded.

"Yeah, I got ya. Let's get Kuwabara and Lauren back." He agreed, muscles slightly more tense now. "I'm gonna teach those damned cats a lesson that kidnapping humans is a really bad idea."

Yusuke fished out the communicator and popped the thing open to contact Koenma. Giving them both a quick nod, he quickly began relaying everything that had happened to the young prince when the connection established itself. To say that Koenma wasn't happy would've been the understatement of century.

"And where is that damned werewolf, while we're at it? She had the nerve to drop in unannounced to say she'd be adding herself to the protection detail!"

"Fuck if I know, she came in here as soon as Lauren and Kuwabara disappeared, started babbling in, like, ten different languages, cussed us all out and vanished. You know how crazy she's been getting." Yusuke snapped back, much to Koenma's ire. The prince ran a hand over his face, looking world weary in his teenaged form, no longer using the ruse of a young toddler nowadays.

"Fine. First things first, get Lauren and Kuwabara back as soon as possible. That's our top priority at this moment. I'll see if I can't track down our rogue werewolf in the meantime. I give her an inch, and she takes not a mile, but a hundred of them! Every time!"

"Well, don't expect me to put a leash on her, that's Allen's job. He's the only one who can control her." Yusuke grunted before adding, "And can you send someone down here to clean shit up? We can't exactly have a bunch of people running around here wondering what happened with the room here looking the way it does."

Koenma muttered another curse before nodding curtly at the screen. "You have a point. I'll make sure to send in a team later tonight to start fixing things. In the meantime, if you see that woman, keep her in sight until you get back. I have a few words to give her and they certainly aren't going to be compliments for a job well done if things don't get out of hand. I'll set up the portal in Kurama's apartment in a few minutes. Stand by."

Left with half-finished mutterings, the connection ended and Yusuke grimaced. Yep. That sounded like Lupin. Things haven't been the same with Lupin, not since he met her, not for the past couple of years. He felt kind of bad for her, but at the same time, she had done this to herself. He finally turned his thoughts away from said werewolf and turned back to the other two. "Looks like we got our ride now." Yusuke waggled the communicator a few times before pocketing the device.

"Good. I can feel the tracker now, it's faint, but it's there."

Yusuke grinned, a spark flickering in his eyes. "Good. Let's kick down their doors and kick us some cat ass while we're at it."

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

"Wow. This place is pretty snazzy looking."

The comment drew Kuwabara's attention back to Lauren, who was openly wide-eyed and gaping. The castle grounds really were amazing, but over the top in his opinion, but impressive, no less. Built up on a hill, thick stone walls and strong, aged wood composed of the castle's main building blocks it seemed. They passed through several courtyards, each of them defended by high walls. Practicing and sparring soldiers lay in the outer most walls, wielding all types of weapons, some not even from Japan, but from other nations. It was no wonder, either, there were different types of cats there as well, from different nations, and strangely enough, plenty of multi-colored cats as well.

They passed through the last gates and were finally within the inner circle where the castle actually lay. A drawbridge lowered around a wide and deep moat—where, Kuwabara spotted, several large shapes swam in concentric circles in the waters below. The tabby from earlier walked alongside them, and noticing his gaze, waved him off.

"Oh, that? That's our collection of aquatic demons that can co-exist together. If our last lines of defense were to fail, we can raise the waters enough for them to snatch any would-be conquerors. It's quite a scene to behold, actually, since most of them are quite poisonous. That's why they won't bother trying to eat one another. One nip and you are a goner. Don't worry; you're under our protection, though. We'll keep you safe!"

The tabby laughed and the mystery behind yet another question answered left him feeling quite queasy. From the looks of it, it left Lauren looking even paler than before as well. Kuwabara felt a little awkward and more than worried at this point, but the second he saw the girl's face, he hesitated before reaching over and giving her shoulders a quick, reassuring squeeze.

"Don't worry, Lauren, Urameshi and the others won't rest until they get here. And I'll keep you safe as long as possible."

She managed a tiny, albeit very nervous smile, but the look in her eyes told him that he'd at least succeeded somewhat in comforting her. She nodded a little in return and returned to sight-seeing, although Kuwabara could tell it was half-hearted this time, and not with the same wonderment and curiosity as before.

The caravan finally stopped and the dais was carefully lowered by the leopard-spotted people, who stayed in their kneeled position. Kuwabara leapt off first and barred off the cats that came to help Lauren off. She wisely chose to stick close by him, knowing she could trust him more than the cats. If Shuiichi had him as a friend, than he must have been a trustworthy companion to be around with.

A small contingent of cats circled them and off they went again, at a reasonable pace.

Inside was an extreme reverse of the outside. While the outside of the castle resembled the old Medieval castles of Europe, the inside was a severe contrast of the Asian cultures. Rice paper doors, teak wood, paper lanterns, and so much more filled the place, it was a wonder how it all seemed to work.

The tabby cat seemed to notice her shock, as well as Kuwabara's, because he grinned that cat grin of his and explained, "Over the hundreds and thousands of years, different cultures have influenced our kingdom's castle. There are bits and pieces of history and inspiration from all over the world here. The reason we've chosen a stone castle is because of its strong armaments and battlements. Not to mention its defenses are more superb. Well, as long as it's all kept in good shape, of course. Can't defend against an enemy's attack if the castle is in ruins beforehand, now can we?"

"Have you ever…had an attack?"

"Several. But we don't let them leave, not easily that is. We can't allow outsiders to have access to our kingdom. It'd be disastrous! Now, come along, Mackenzie-san! We have to get you ready!"

"Ready? For what?'

She stared down at her attire as they walked: jeans, a sweatshirt for the coming winter chill back in Japan, and worn but reliable sneakers. She frowned.

"For your meeting with the king and the delegates of the Demon Cat Kingdom! You're going to be around many higher ups, so to be dressed appropriately is the key!"

That nearly had her tripping over her own feet. She remembered the king quite well; he looked like a miniature lion with the mix-matched eyes. But the news of meeting delegates for this kingdom? That was a new bit of news. She felt nervousness clawing away at her belly and she was suddenly queasy at that prospect.

"Wait, I thought I was only meeting the king?" Lauren pressed, but her guide only waved a paw dismissively as he gave her a cat-grin.

"Well, you'll also be meeting the worldwide delegates of the Demon Cat Kingdom as well, silly! You'll meet them at the royal banquet, and we have to get you looking the part! Come, come, the servants are waiting for you!"

"But, just wait a second, you can't—I don't plan to stay, I—!" She stammered a few incoherent lines out, but to no avail. The pudgy little tabby ignored her pleas and even with Kuwabara's help, it seemed the cat was more deaf than previously thought.

They rushed down a series of corridors, with Lauren gathering more butterflies in her stomach. Kuwabara eyed the guards that stood attentively beside several rooms with a deep frown, thinking hard.

"You know, maybe we should just go along with it for now. If I know the others, they won't keep us waiting for long," he finally told Lauren as they started down a dead-end hallway. Lauren cast a worried glance up at him, and he smiled at her, trying to look reassuring.

"Besides, I'm sure they've found a way here. If not them, then…well…a good friend of ours who occasionally takes up odd jobs with us might. She's…kinda crazy like that. Makes it her job to know these things, though."

"Friend?"

Before Kuwabara could answer, the tabby paused outside a sliding door and pronounced that they had arrived. Lauren was immediately swept into the room, despite her growing protests. Kuwabara took two steps afterwards, but the tabby barred his way. "Ah, ah! Our special guest only! You may go and refresh yourself with our delectable treats in the other room!" He motioned to the sliding door opposite the room Lauren had been whisked away into. He twisted to view it. A servant cat, its fur a splotchy brown and orange and white, opened the door from the inside, head bowed, and motioned with a paw inside.

"If you'll please step this way," the servant cat mewed to him softly without lifting its head. He cast a nervous glance behind him, torn between leaving Lauren to the clutches of cats and gathering Intel on this place. Finally, he slowly trudged into the room, and the servant cat closed the door quietly behind him.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**

The seed that Kurama used pulsed with renewed vigor as they closed in on the location where the rift between worlds lay. It was hidden in the back alleyways between buildings in the center of town. The air shimmered every once in a while, but it seemed dim and growing fainter with each passing second.

"Only a cat would hide it in an obscure place where people don't often wander," Kurama murmured quietly as they approached. He could feel Hiei's energy signature not too far, and knew the fire demon was close at hand. Lupin, however, he couldn't sense. She was good at hiding herself when she wanted, and she had certainly delved straight into her usual routine of stealth.

"It doesn't look like it'll be open for much longer." Yusuke said and Kurama nodded in agreement, replacing the tracker seed where he'd swiped it from.

"Then quit dawdling and move it, detective." The other two looked where the voice came from and Hiei seemed to pull himself out of the shadows themselves, red eyes bright and glimmering reflectively.

"He's right. It's now or never. Koenma won't be able to replicate the portal."

"Then what're we waiting for?" Yusuke smirked and he boldly stepped towards the portal. He shot a hand out, testing it. When his hand disappeared and he pulled back, satisfied he had his whole hand back, he stepped through. The other two weren't far behind him, and not a moment too soon. As soon as they stepped into the field of fresh, spring-scented grass and swaying cat-tails, the portal vanished. Yusuke eyed the spot where he had just came through with distaste.

"Great. Now that we're here, how're we supposed to get back?"

"I'm sure they have ways of slipping in and out of the kingdom. Perhaps we could convince another Schrodinger's shadow cat to…open a portal."

"Convince. Right." Yusuke shook his head before eying the valley spread out before him. They were close to a forest's edge, and below there was a village of low huts. Cats of all colors, breeds, and sizes galloped or pranced or rolled about below. A castle loomed in the distance, something straight out of a history text book, but it wasn't in ruins, and it was in great condition, almost like new. The three newcomers, however, were not as enraptured by its sight as Lauren had been when she'd first laid eyes on it.

"So, I'm guessing little miss princess is trapped away in the highest tower, then?"

"Doubtful. Perhaps the main hall or the throne room to meet the king. We'd best slip in as quickly as we can, before we alert anyone of our presence."

"Why? They're just a bunch of cats."

"These cats have guarded their kingdom jealously for thousands of years. Not very many stumble upon this kingdom and even fewer have made it out alive. At least, those who were uninvited."

Yusuke mulled over this information, although he didn't look scared or impressed. "What happens if you are invited?"

"No one knows. Rumor has it in the Makai that the invited guests get turned into cats themselves, to help replenish the royal bloodline. It wouldn't do to have incest run rampant in the royal family." Kurama replied.

"That's kind of gross."

"It's the truth. They may choose from their own subjects or someone outside the kingdom. It usually comes down to a choice of the king or its prince. Or princess, if the heir is female."

"And the queen?"

"If the king dies, then she may choose."

"Wow. Sounds like one big happy family," Yusuke quipped sarcastically. Kurama didn't smile, eyes sharply regarding the castle beyond, and the village below.

"You might want to quit while you're ahead. That woman made it here before us."

Kurama turned his sharp gaze away from the sleepy scene below and looked to where Hiei had moved to. He was leaning casually against a tree, arms crossed over his chest. He nodded towards the branch above his head. A tiny silver capsule with a gray parachute dangled at least a foot above him.

"Well, well, gifts from above. I can dig that." Yusuke grinned as he strolled over, yanked the thing out of the branches and unscrewed the canister's lid. He dumped the contents of the canister into his hands and whistled, eyes growing a little brighter with glee. Three watches spilled lay in the palm of his hand, their faces large and the time ticking away. It was nearly two in the morning, the watches said, already set for time in Japan. Yusuke strapped one on, and gave the dial around the face an experimental twist. The image around him briefly turned to static, before he looked up and down himself. He looked the same and frowned.

"What gives? If she went through the trouble to get these for us…"

"You might want to check your reflection, Yusuke."

"…Wait. You don't mean…?"

Kurama nodded, a smile peaking his lips.

"Oh, come on! Really? I'll kill her!"

"Your ears _are_ rather fuzzy."

"Don't you freakin' start, fox-boy! Don't you dare!"

Hiei gave a subtle, if mocking, chuckle.

"It suits you, detective. Especially the tail."

Yusuke shot a glance at his backside and grit his teeth before repeating, "Oh, come on! Now she's definitely dead! She finally gets us these, and she ends up programming the simplest shit in them, that's bullshit!"

Kurama was able to pry the other two watches from Yusuke's hand and strapped one onto his wrist and twisted the dial. As fun as it was picking on Yusuke for a moment's easy relief, they had a job to do, and theatrics weren't getting them anywhere. He offered the last to Hiei, but the fire demon simply glared at the device, as if trying to will it to burst into flames.

"There is no way I am wearing that thing and end up looking like you two."

"It's only a holographic projection, Hiei."

"It may work for you two, and that insane woman, but I won't be drafted into using one of those things." He pushed away from the tree, starting down the slope. "I'll see the two of you at the castle."

With that said, Hiei disappeared in a black shadow, leaving the two holographic-disguised fox demon and former detective behind.

**OoOoOoOoOoO**


End file.
